Unexpected, Unpredicted Love
by Sovereign Violette
Summary: Usagi sits on a bench in Juuban park thinking about her life with and without the Starlights... especially a certain silver-haired light. What happens when her wish to see him comes true? Rated T for safety. It gets better as the chapters progress, I promise! Please review!
1. Unheard Words

Note: PLEASE DO NOT FLAME MY WORK!

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or the Three Lights - Search For Your Love song!

Special note: Beta-corrected by Yume-no-Ryuusei. Link in my profile!

Enjoy the story!

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_"Kimi wa itsumo kagayi te ta,_

_Egao hitotsu chiisana hoshi,_

_Taisetsu ni shite ta yo (eien no Starlight)..._

She smiled sadly as the song played from her iPod. She only listened to the Three Lights' songs, so there wasn't a need or desire for her to listen to anything else.

Some would call that a form of depressed obsession.

_"Ano hiboku wa mamore nakute,_

_Kuyashi namida kora e ta dake,_

_Itami ga nokoru yo (wasurenai sweetheart)..._

The Three Lights were still the most popular band in Japan, and their songs were always on the top hits list. The song she was listening too, in fact, was the number one. It was harder to find their music nowadays, but for those who managed to find their CDs, they found it expensive. People still talk about them on the radio, often wondering how they disappeared without their fans or the paparazzi knowing, and wanting to know where they are now.

_"Search for your love, sora no suishou,_

_Search for your love, nakanai de kure,_

_Search for your love, hontou wa,_

_Dakishimetai no sa..._

She felt tears build up in her eyes, slowly blurring her vision. She has a different life now, not at all like the one she had... all because of one, life-changing decision.

_"Kimi no kaori zutto (sagashiteru),_

_Boku no koe yo todoke (aishiteru),_

_Ima doko ni iru no (Moonlight Princess)..._

She closed her eyes. She knew that her friends-could she even call them that?-were searching for her, as they have been for the past two years. They were, understandably, worried for her and possibly angry; she hadn't contacted with the women since she left them, and though she missed them, she wouldn't go back to that life.

_"Boku no purinsesu (princess),_

_Kotaete answer for me,_

_Ima sugu answer for me,_

_Kotaete answer for me,_

_Yasashiku answer for me..._

She knew her friends wanted her to come back to them; who wouldn't? After all, their predestined future-with her as Queen of Crystal Tokyo, Mamoru's supposed soon-to-be bride, and mother of her future child, Chibiusa-was on the line. However, she realized a future as great as being in charge of Crystal Tokyo could not be ruled by a sovereign who did not desire the position.

To avoid her friends, she had to get a job, move out of her mom's home, into her own apartment, and use her Lunar disguise magic to hide her appearance. She had to avoid her most obvious and favorite hangouts, as well. She attended Tokyo University and studied majority of her free time, so she could become a writer. True, she had never had any dreams of any sort of profession before-she always wanted to be Mamoru's wife-but she knew for a fact that it was never too late for anyone to develop dreams; she was no exception.

She admitted, deep down, she disliked being so alone, disliked leaving her friends behind, but she felt she had no choice, to have this life.

_"Tooi yozora kakenuketeku,_

_Nagareboshi ni negau yo ima,_

_Aitai to sasayaku (tsutaete yo Starlight),_

_Toki ga sugite otona ni naru,_

_Boku wa yatto kizuita no sa,_

_Tarinai kakera ni (soba ni ite Sweet heart)..._

She could not help the few silent, warm tears that fell as she listened to those lyrics. They reminded her of her newest friends and how they made her realize she would never try to live a normal life again, for she knew she couldn't know them as they were without the life she lived as both a senshi and a regular girl.

She wished so badly for them to sing those words to her. To have their eyes on her and have them reflect genuine love and affection to her.

She withheld a bitter laugh. They would never sing those words to her; she knew they did not feel that way toward her.

The last time she had seen them was two years ago. They had often acted impertinent, conceited and down right rude. They were very conscious of their social status and loved to flaunt it... even though they pretended to hate it.

_"Search for your love, gin no unabara,_

_Search for your love, fune wa tadayou,_

_Search for your love, kuruoshisa ni,_

_Nagasarete yuku..._

When she had first met the Starlights, she had been oblivious to whom they really were; idols or no. But Seiya soon became a good friend to her. True to her nature, though, she very quickly wanted to be friends with all of them.

But then... their identities as sailor senshi were revealed on the plane... and everything went downhill from there.

She had been heartbroken when Star Healer warned her to stay away from Seiya and blamed her for his injury, when he protected her. But in the end, she could not stay away.

During the battle with Chaos, Healer and Maker admitted to being her friends with the kindest, gentlest smiles she had ever seen.

_"Kimi no kaori zutto (sagashiteru),_

_Boku no koe yo todoke (aishiteru),_

_Ima doko ni iru no (Moonlight Princess),_

_Boku no purinsesu..._

She was surprised with her state of being, after they had left, for she had been left with confusing emotions that conflicted with how she felt already and her way of thinking. She had a lot of time to think it over, as well; two years was long enough for her. When she could not get a particular Starlight off her mind, she had chosen that it was not a passing fancy or a childish crush; it was love. It was the sort of love that made no sense, despite all of the popular phrases that explained what it felt like. It was everything and nothing at the same time; the kind where even the slightest hint of that special person could set off a whirlwind of thoughts and feelings through one's body, but no one other than the person feeling it had anything to do with it.

She looked to the sky, bathing in the bright, tranquil moonlight that normally, during any other time, would give her a sense of peace. She watched the stars glitter and shine, as if excited by the attention she was giving them.

_"Kotaete answer for me,_

_Ima sugu answer for me,_

_Kotaete answer for me,_

_Yasashiku answer for me..."_

The song slowly came to a stop and she turned off her iPod, just before the next song could begin.

_'Stop thinking about them, Usagi,'_ She scolded herself. _'And no more tears!'_She wiped her cheeks clean of the tears, drying them so she didn't feel the extra chill on her face from the wetness.

Usagi stood up and put her hands over her heart, staring up into the sky.

_'I can't stop dreaming about him. Even though we never really got to know one another... I know, the one smile he gave me, is enough for me to love him.'_

Suddenly, a shooting star passed over her head. Quickly, she closed her eyes and made her wish...

_'I know I might never see the Starlights again, but if it were possible that I could, I wish I could see them all, one last time.'_

The shooting star disappeared into the darkness of the night without replying to her wish-not that she expected a response, of course.

Reality seemed to sink into her then as she felt a gentle, chilly breeze glide over her body, making her hair billow slightly behind her. Here she was, wishing for the impossible, late in the night in Juuban Park, and knowing she has a science exam to study for tomorrow.

She ran a hand through her bangs. 'What are you doing, Usagi? Wishing on a shooting star won't make it come true.' She closed her eyes, trying to calm her mind...

"I finally found you." A distinctly male voice sounded behind her.

Usagi froze-_am I dreaming?_-before slowly turning around. Her eyes bulged, as a soft gasp emitted from her throat.

Before her stood a man, about 5'8-5'10, in a pale blue (almost white) tuxedo with a light pink carnation over his left breast, a deep red tie and a dark grey-blue shirt under the tuxedo jacket. He had his long, silver hair tied back in a ponytail that reached to his ankles, and bright jade green eyes that sparkled with too many emotions for her to count.

"Yaten Kou..." She whispered so low she barely heard herself. She stood frozen, not wanting to touch him and find out he was just a figment of her imagination.

"I finally found you," Yaten repeated, slowly walking toward her. His voice had a harsh note in it that made her wince.

"Your star seed... I felt its pain. I felt it pulse with agony every single moment for the past week. We came back today, finally, to see you." He stopped three feet in front of her. A scowl appeared on his face.

"But the girls say they haven't spoken to you in two years. They haven't seen you at all, in fact; all they have to know that you are still alive is the-the disguise magic or whatever you have and cannot hide! What is wrong with you, Usagi? Don't you care about your friends?"

She snapped. "Of course I care!" Usagi screamed at him. She couldn't help it. Two years of withheld feelings of loneliness, sadness, and frustration poured from her heart.

Startled by the tone of her voice, the silver-haired man stepped back. She had never raised her voice at him or any of her friends before.

"I haven't hung out with the girls in two years! I haven't seen Michiru-san, Haruka-san, Setsuna-san or Hotaru-chan since the battle with Galaxia!" Tears gathered in her eyes. "I haven't been to The Crown or the temple in so long..."

Her voice grew quiet. "I have to study so hard nowadays... I have to attend classes and go to my job and pay utility bills..." Her voice trailed off.

Silence forced its way into the night air. Usagi looked down, avoiding those fierce jade eyes. The held disappointment, anger and annoyance. She didn't want those eyes directed at her. She didn't want him to scorn her for what she felt she had to do.

_'Well, this is what wishing on shooting stars does for you.'_

Oh, she learned her lesson this time. She would never wish on a shooting star again.

The man stalked toward her and grabbed her wrists, yanking her forward. Usagi, clearly startled by this sudden action, stumbled in front of him, a few mere inches from being pressed against him. She looked up at him with wide, shocked eyes.

"Why did you have to leave them in the first place, Usagi? What have they ever done to you?" His eyes glared with piercing anger that the moon princess swore was aimed straight into the very fibers of her soul. "Why have you abandoned them?"

"I never abandoned them!" Tears cascaded freely down her face. "Is it so wrong to want to have my own happiness? Am I not allowed to love who I want to?"

Her eyes bore into his own. "The others... The others want me to love Mamoru, but I don't. They want me to be with him, to become Queen of Crystal Tokyo in the Thirtieth century.." She tried to pull her hands free, but his grip held strong. "But I can't! I don't love him! I love someone else!"

"Who do you love, then?"

Usagi paused. Her tears slowed, but didn't stop falling. She looked down.

Her lips moved but she didn't hear her own voice, too overwhelmed with her own feelings being in question and the shock of Yaten's sudden appearance.

"W-What?" Shock filled his voice and etched his face, and the sudden sound from unexpected silence jolted her to reality for the second time that night.

She broke free from his grasp, turned, and fled from his sight.


	2. Damaging Reason

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon!

Enjoy the story!

Beta-corrected: Midnight's Violet Haze here on ! She's amazing!

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Yaten strayed behind Seiya and the inner senshi-excluding Rei-with Taiki, glaring at the back of the girls' heads. He was irritated, worried and angry. Honestly, was it really so hard to care about your friends and know what's wrong with them? He didn't think so, but it wasn't the first time Yaten thought the girls were displaying their incompetence, and he doubted it would be the last.

Yaten winced internally as another fierce pang of agony ripped through him.

_'Usagi... what's happened to you?' _he wondered.

~*~ Flash back (2 Earth weeks earlier) ~*~

_The star seeds of the fellow citizens and senshi of Kinmoku were returned; plants and wildlife were beginning to come back to their planet, and the palace had been rebuilt._

_Everyone was in a state of surreal bliss and peace._

_Healer knew of that for certain because she could feel it. She could always feel the happiness of the star seeds closest to her. After all, she was Sailor Star Healer. It was in her power to heal stars and star seeds alike. However, she could also tell when there was a disruption in the star seed-negative feelings, for example. But when it wasn't critical for her to know, she blocked them._

_Healer walked into the large room that belonged to Princess Kakyuu. She smiled softly at the sight of her princess relaxing against the headboard of her bed, and her other two right-hand senshi close to her. Fighter was sitting next to her on the edge of the bed, animatedly speaking about something from an Earth time. Maker was concentrating on something that probably had to do with stars... or was pretending to, but in actuality listening to Fighter's story._

_Gazing at her Princess, she couldn't help but feel a little empty inside. She missed a certain blonde with bright, infinitely hopeful blue eyes. The sailor soldier who had defeated Galaxia, Eternal Sailor Moon. Or rather, Tsukino Usagi._

_She never really spent much time with the blonde, and certainly never any alone time, but Healer knew she had special feelings for Usagi. Usagi was so pure, so gentle... she believed in everyone's heart to be good. Even when she fought with Galaxia._

"I believe we can understand each other."

_She was loud, a bit of a crybaby and clumsy, but those things were what made her special. She always had a warm smile for everyone, even her enemies. She always thought about others before herself._

_The most wonderful thing about her, though, was her shine. It was so sweet, so warm... no one else's shine compared to that. Not even Kakyuu-hime's._

_Of course, Healer hadn't always thought that way about the Senshi of the Moon._

_When times were darkening on Earth, Healer hated Sailor Moon with every fiber of her being. She felt she was distracting Seiya's mind from his mission on searching for their princess._

_It only got worse when Seiya jumped in front of Sailor Moon to take an attack that was aimed at her. With him injured and in love with the odango-haired girl, Healer felt sick with knowing of her existence. She wanted the blonde to disappear from their lives completely._

_However, she soon saw the light of it all, and fought to protect that sweet, moonlit shine._

_Healer's eyes grew distant with the memory of Usagi's sweet voice._

_The Earth's inner senshi were unsure, but wanted to believe in the Starlights-if not just for Usagi's views about them, but for the fact of being Sailor Senshi as well-and her outer senshi wanted them, as well as the enemy that they believed the Starlights brought onto Earth, gone; by any means necessary._

"You don't have a soldier's courage or pride, do you?" _Chaos had asked the Moon Princess during their battle._

"If a soldier's pride means hurting one another, I don't want it." _She responded._

_The image of that beautiful golden-haired angel with bright, full wings, and her sweet, warm shine, made Healer smile softly. 'Sailor Moon...'_

_She was the only one who fully believed in the ability to understand others, just for the sake of being friends and fellow sailor senshi. She never needed anything from anyone to be able to believe in and understand someone._

_Healer remembered that evil, menacing voice, too. The voice of Chaos in Galaxia's body; the one that had nearly destroyed both of their galaxies-_

_"Healer?" The Fireball Princess' voice broke the silver-haired woman from her musings._

_Jade eyes blinked a few times before adjusting properly. She saw them staring at her; her two comrades in an odd way, and the red-haired princess with sorrow and concern._

_"Are you alright?" Kakyuu-hime asked softly._

_She nodded. "I'm fine, Princess. I-"_

_Suddenly, Healer's body went rigid for an instant before beginning to shake uncontrollably. Agony unlike anything she ever felt before seemed to rip apart the core of her star seed. Not even the beating she had gotten from Galaxia, the knowledge of her planet's inhabitants dying as she fled from it, and seeing her princess die before her eyes combined compared to this._

_Healer let out a blood curdling scream. Tears formed and poured down the silver-haired senshi's face like a river. Harsh sobs wracked her body, her face contorted in pain._

_Before three sets of eyes, Healer's star seed came out from her forehead. It was a pure silver, star-shaped star seed. It glittered brightly with a shine that was a combination of both hers and someone else's. Bright golden and silver lights flashed around the room, the intensity hardly being contained. Unbelievable despair unfurled between the lights, affecting all in the room._

_Princess Kakyuu's screams mingled with Maker's and Fighter's, but the screams fell on deaf ears. Healer couldn't stop the pain from radiating out of her star seed. Her heart and mind felt like it would explode from such a feeling._

_Then, after what seemed like an eternity, the lights died down, but the emotion did not. Healer was finally able to take control of her body and make her star seed sink back into her. The pain did not stop, but she struggled with blocking it for several minutes before she was successful. However, this was only a temporary solution; it would not last long._

_The silver-haired woman fell to her knees, her arms hanging loosely at her sides. With her green eyes out of focus, and her breathing shallow, she seemed to be in a trance._

_"Healer..." Kakyuu-hime called after some time._

_No answer._

_"Healer..." She called again, this time earning a confused, searching stare._

_The red-haired princess held out her hand to the woman, and Healer took it, but when the shorter woman did not feel the comfort she was seeking, she let go._

_"Who has been hurt, Healer?"_

_The silver-haired woman looked down to the ground, her eyes growing out of focus once again. She searched with all of her might through the star seeds she knew so well. As had she felt before, everyone she knew closely was happy and content._

'It... It must be from Earth.' _Came the vaguely acknowledged thought._

_She began to search there, too. It was hard, being in a whole other galaxy, but she could manage._

_Checking the inner senshi wasn't difficult. They had, after all, accepted and befriended the Starlights. They even gave their lives for the three women. First, Healer checked Minako, who missed the Three Lights, but was happy overall. Ami, Makoto and Rei were in the same state as their friend, with varying degrees of how much they missed the Starlights._

_The outer senshi were harder to read, for she was being blocked and she hadn't had a lot of personal contact with them. Uranus was angry and concerned, along with Neptune. Pluto... Pluto was a bit upset and worried for reasons that Healer did not know. Luna was in the same state as the Senshi of Time and, from what little Healer could figure out, Artemis was upset, as well. Saturn... well, she was blocking Healer, purposely._

_Healer couldn't read Chiba Mamoru's star seed at all. She had had absolutely no contact with that man in her life, so she couldn't read into his star seed. That left..._

_Healer's blood ran cold._'No... it couldn't be. She's so warm and peaceful, so gentle and kind... she couldn't be in such agony... could she?'

_Healer reached out with no hesitation to read the star seed... and almost regretted it._

_The same pain from before washed out for a long moment, thundering against Healer's mind and heart, before she managed to block it out once more._

_Healer's eyes formed more tears as she began to cry once again, sobbing hard and uncontrollably._

_The others in the room stared at Healer with worry etched on their faces. Who could be in so much pain that the realization of whom it was made_ Healer _cry?_

_"Who is it?" Maker was the first to speak up._

_Healer wrapped her arms around herself. "Oh Kami... no... no, please, no..."_

_Maker frowned. Her comrade was beginning to zone out again. Maker moved to Healer, knelt before her, and raised her friend's head. She looked deep into jade eyes that sparkled with tears._

_"Who is it, Healer? We need to know." Maker tried again, but the shorter woman wouldn't budge, continuing her ramblings._

_"Please, no... please... she doesn't deserve this..."_

_A resounding slap echoed with a gasp from the Fireball Princess through the room. Healer stopped sobbing to look up in shock._

_Fighter had just slapped her._

_A red hand mark began to angrily form on Healer's right cheek._

_"Who is it?" Fighter demanded harshly. She didn't mean too, of course, but she was scared. She was scared it might be the owner of the most beautiful shine in all the galaxies._

_Healer began to tremble. "It's... It's Usagi..."_

_Three pairs of eyes widened in disbelief._

_"She's in so much pain..." Healer rambled on. "So much pain... I have never felt anything like it in my life..."_

_The shortest woman suddenly looked to the red-haired sovereign. "Please, Princess, we have to go back to Earth. We have too! I-I... I have to heal her star seed..."_

_The princess grew serious then. She stared at her Starlights. They were silently begging her to let them go. They didn't need too, of course; she was going to let them go anyway._

_"In seven Earth days, you may leave."_

~*~ End of flashback ~*~

As promised, Princess Kakyuu had sent them to Earth to find out what happened to Usagi, and heal her. And here they were now, on Earth, trying to find that out.

They had returned in their Earth forms as Yaten, Seiya, and Taiki Kou. Only... they were a bit different.

Yaten stood at approximately 5'8 with a slender yet muscular build. Out of the three, he still looked the most feminine, though not overly so. He stood in a pale blue tuxedo just like before, a pink rose pin over his left breast. His hair was tied back in a ponytail that reached down to his ankles like his other two "brothers."

Seiya stood at 6'0 with a more muscular build and broader shoulders. He barely looked like a boyish teenager now, having matured a young man. He wore a bright red tuxedo just like before, with a blood red rose over his left breast. His hair was tied back as well, stretching to his ankles.

Taiki stood at 6'4 with a full-blown male build with the broadest shoulders of the two and the most muscular-which was surprising since he was more of a technology person than a sports person. He wore a tannish yellow tuxedo with a white rose over his left breast. His chocolate brown hair was tied back and stretched down to his ankles.

Seiya, Yaten, Taiki, Ami, Makoto, and Minako walked the rest of the way to the Hikawa Jinja and stood at the foot of the stairs. The Three Lights stood amongst themselves as the three girls joined Rei with the outer senshi a few feet away, who were glaring at the three males before them (...well, Haruka was glaring at Seiya, anyway).

The Three Lights glared back just as intensely, but at all of them. Yaten saw Minako and Luna wince at the same time, and he felt smug satisfaction on the inside. He liked the Earth senshi, true, but at the moment, he didn't feel anything for them. Their princess was in pain and, instead of being there for her, they were happy with their own lives.

"So, _this _is why you called us here, Rei? To welcome them back?" Haruka asked pointedly, her glare never ceasing.

"Hai. They say they are here for a reason." The princess of Mars answered.

Setsuna frowned. "Is it a new enemy?"

Taiki stared coldly at the dark-haired woman. "That remains to be seen."

Ami's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean, Taiki-san?"

"He means that depending on the answers you give to our questions, we will decide if we become enemies, or remain allies." Seiya answered for him.

"And we should be afraid of you, why?" The princess of Uranus growled.

Seiya opened his mouth to retort, but Yaten spoke up.

"Where is Usagi?"

Silence.

Haruka, Michiru, Rei and Setsuna wore a mixture of anger, pain and betrayal on their faces. Ami, Minako, Makoto, Luna and Artemis wore a mixture of shame and worry on their faces. Hotaru's face was blank, careful to not reveal any type of emotion.

"Where. Is. Usagi?" Yaten hissed. He was pleased when he saw Minako wince again, before replying to him.

"We don't know." She murmured.

Taiki's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by that?"

"We haven't seen Usagi in two years," Haruka said bitterly.

"She abandoned us." Rei added.

"WHAT!" The Three Lights shouted simultaneously.

Haruka wrapped her arm around Michiru's waist, drawing strength from her lover.

"Koneko abandoned us. She abandoned her destiny to become Queen of Crystal Tokyo in the Thirtieth century, Mamoru, and everlasting peace." She sighed. "Every so often, one or a few of us would get near her, and feel her Lunar disguise magic. We would try to pinpoint it, of course, but this is Tokyo; if you want to get away from someone, there are easy ways of doing that, and quickly."

Yaten narrowed his eyes at the girls in front of him, a look of pure irritation masking his handsome features. They were all lying; Yaten just knew it. Either that, or they were leaving something out. Usagi would never abandon her friends... not even if her life depended on it.

So what made her leave?

Yaten looked to his brothers, and clearly saw they were thinking along the same line as himself. Taiki had a look of pure disbelief on his face, whereas Seiya looked appalled by the accusation they were making against the Moon Princess.

With one look shared between the Three Lights, the nodded silently, and turned to walk down the steps.

"Matte!" Makoto's voice called out.

The young men were already down four steps before they stopped, turned, and looked back at the girls.

"What?" Yaten snapped.

"Where are you going?" Michiru asked.

Yaten brushed his hand through his hair while briefly closing his eyes. "We're going to look for Usagi."

Hotaru stared at him, then said something that only fueled the fire of determination for the Starlights.

"You might as well give up, you know. She won't show herself to you. If she won't show herself to us, her most precious friends from many life times, what makes you think she will show herself to you?"

She was met with silence. Then...

"We don't know what you did.." Taiki started.

"...But we're not like you; we would never hurt Odango. We would rather take our own lives." Seiya finished.

"We'll find her and heal her pain, whether you care to tell help us, or not." Yaten added.

The three turned and walked down the rest of the path, leaving behind seven stunned ladies, two equally stunned cats, and a secretly happy Hotaru.

* * *

Seiya ran forward, looking around him wildly. His breathing was hard and deep, sweat grazing his eyebrows. People were staring after and murmuring about him, but he didn't care. It's not like they knew he was Seiya Kou right now; he was wearing sunglasses.

The raven-haired man gritted his teeth behind closed lips. He was frustrated that he couldn't find her. He had been searching all morning and the first early hours of the afternoon for her, but nothing that even resembled the feel of her shine showed itself. Not only that, but there were no signs of golden odangos, or loud laughing or whining or crying, no public displays of embarrassing clumsiness... nothing.

It was as if she erased herself out of existence.

He still loved her, but he knew he never had a chance with her. Not even with Mamoru out of the picture. It didn't matter, though. He could love her from afar; he could spend time with her and just be her friend.

To see her beautiful shine radiating with happiness, to see her smile, to see her laugh... it was enough for him. He loved those things about her; he always would.

He frowned internally, then. The pain he felt from Healer's star seed was really Usagi's... how could she survive with that much agony held inside? How could someone so pure and strong, with an unyielding belief in others, feel such an emotion of that magnitude?

_'Odango... What have they done to you?'_

He looked up and realized he had stopped in front of Tokyo University. He pondered on going inside for a few moments. The last time Seiya had seen Usagi, she wasn't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer. However, it had been two years since then. Could she have changed that much?

_'Something brought me here. The least I can do is go inside, and see if she attends here.'_

He walked along the campus sidewalk and entered the huge building. He slowly walked into what he suspected was the office and smirked when he only saw one woman typing away at something on the computer.

He made his way up to the counter and leaned on it with his forearms. "Excuse me, miss?"

She typed away a moment in silence before turning her attention to him. "Yes? How may I help you?"

"I was wondering if you could check and see if Tsukino Usagi attended this school, please?" He asked in a polite, but slightly flirtatious, voice.

She nodded and made a few clicks before scanning over something. After a few moments of long silence, the girl returned to staring at him.

"Tsukino Usagi does attend here, but there are no known visitors of any kind on any contact records, emergency or not. May I ask what your affiliation with her is?"

Seiya blinked, then, smiling, took off his sun glasses.

He heard a sharp gasp.

"Y-You.. Y-You're..."

"Seiya Kou of the Three Lights." He finished for her, smiling confidently. "You see, I am a friend of Usagi's. My brothers and I just arrived back in Japan, and Usagi has a spacious apartment, so we need somewhere to stay..." He smirked then. "I'll be happy to call you and give you backstage passes to any concerts we may be having here... if, that is, you tell me when she attends school."

The girl hurriedly wrote down on a piece of paper Usagi's schedule, her name and phone number. Her face was flushed with excitement and slight shock. Once she handed over the paper, he winked at her, wished her a good day, and left.

Outside the building, he took out his cell phone and dialed Yaten's number. When that didn't work, he dialed Taiki's, waiting impatiently for him to pick up.

_'Honestly, guys, keep your phones by you!' _He thought irately.

_"Hello? Taiki Kou speaking."_

"Taiki! I found out some information about Usagi!" Seiya gushed excitedly.

_"What?"_

"She attends Tokyo University! I have her schedule and everything." Seiya paused. "It was pretty easy to get, actually; I can't believe our old idol status is still credible."

_"I didn't think she would attend a college... wow that is a surprise! We can see her tomorrow, for sure."_

"Yeah... by the way, where are we staying?"

_"Our old studio apartment."_

"Really? Wow. Our old manager is nice. Alright, well, I'll see you later. If you can, contact Yaten; I tried, but his cell's not picking up."

He began to walk off with a delighted smile on his face.

Unbeknownst him, his conversation was overheard by a certain blue-haired young woman.

* * *

Yaten panted as he stopped at the gates of Juuban Park. He had been everywhere; the arcade, her favorite food hangouts, a few random high schools (in case she was held back... not that he'd ever think she would be), and the roof of her old school.

This was the last place he was going to check for the night.

_'If only I knew where she lived,'_ Yaten thought. _'This would be a lot easier, then.'_

He let out a long sigh once he finally caught his breath. He was sweaty and dirty from all the running around he had been doing. Under any other circumstances, he would never even think doing it; he hated running and sweat more so now than he had two years ago.

But right now, he didn't care about that. All that mattered to him was finding Usagi. Finding her and comforting her and... and...

Yaten hunched over slightly, groaning as he started to feel more of the pain he had blocked out earlier this morning. It bothered him before that she could feel this much agony, but now, it was worse. He could never entirely block out the emotion. He always felt a small amount of it-but even that small amount was horrid.

_'It's worse than what she felt with Galaxia,' _he thought.

He slowly walked through the park, taking his time in both remembering the scenery and finding the golden-haired angel. The trees were large and thick, casting long shadows over certain places, blinding him of what could be seen.

The cool night air calmed him; the stars, glittering brightly with excited energy, made him feel at peace. For a moment, he almost forgot why he was there. For a moment, he almost forgot Usagi was 'missing.' But then the pain began to rapidly increase, and he remembered why he was there, why it was so important to heal her.

He looked up to the moon then. An image of her loving smile briefly passed before his eyes. His eyes drooped just slightly. _'I'm getting tired,'_ he thought as he yawned silently into his hand. _'Maybe I should go home and rest...'_

As if angry with this thought, the feelings he had been blocking flowed freely like a broken dam into his heart. He let out a choked gasp and hunched over.

_'Kami, Usagi... it's so intense...'_

Suddenly, a light bulb went off. It was _so intense! _That meant she was close! He was close to finding the Moon Princess!

Yaten ran through the park, the adrenaline pumping through his veins. She was there, in the park. She was near! He could find her! And he could talk to her... find out what was wrong...

He passed trees at a speed faster than before, eager to reach her. The wind made his vision blurry from the tears it caused, but he didn't care. All that mattered to him right then was finding her. Once he found her, he would take her in his arms and hold on tightly, so she'd never disappear again. So she'd never have to be so alone.

All he wanted was the chance to send her worries away. The chance to make her smile, to make her laugh, to make her happy. The chance to... to...

Suddenly, his footsteps came to a halt. His breath caught in his throat, so he could not speak. His eyes widened at what was in front of him.

A young woman stood under the full moon, its shine washing over her. Her skin looked pale with an ethereal glow, but somehow, it didn't seem unhealthy. Her long golden hair flowed in two separate streaks at both sides, and was pinned up in a meat-ball-like fashion. She wore a denim blue skirt that stopped just a few inches before her knees, a short sleeve, button-up white shirt, ankle-length white socks and dark blue shoes with a bit of a heel.

Yaten had found Tsukino Usagi.

He nearly cried out in joy. He found her! He could do so many things for her now...

Yaten watched her bring her hands to her chest as she bowed her head. A little confused, he looked up to the sky. He smiled at what he assumed she saw.

Usagi was making a wish on a shooting star.

A slight breeze passed through her hair, making it billow softly behind her. Her golden tresses weaved around slowly, reaching out to him, as if begging him to come and caress them.

Before he had a chance to stop himself, his voice sounded.

"I finally found you."

She froze, her body rigid, before slowly turning to face him. Her eyes widened at the sight of him, and a soft, shocked gasp emitted from her throat. She clearly hadn't been expecting him to show up in her life again.

_"She abandoned us."_

He frowned internally. It wasn't true! She wouldn't... she couldn't abandon her friends. She wasn't capable of something like that.

_"Koneko abandoned us. She abandoned her destiny to become Queen of Crystal Tokyo in the Thirtieth century, Mamoru, and everlasting peace. Every so often, one or a few of us would get near her, and feel her Lunar disguise magic."_

_'Lies... It's all lies!'_

_"We would try to pinpoint it, of course, but this is Tokyo; if you want to get away from someone, there are easy ways of doing that, and quickly."_

Something inside him snapped. Well, if she left her friends, he was going to know why, and have her suffer more for it! He'd see to that.

"I finally found you." He repeated, nearly hissing at her. He slowly advanced toward her. He almost stopped when he saw her flinch, but he didn't.

"Your star seed... I felt its pain. I felt it pulse with agony every single moment for the past week. We came back, finally, to see you." He stopped three feet in front of her, and scowled.

"But the girls say they haven't spoken to you in two years. They haven't seen you at all, in fact; all they have to know that you are still alive is the-the disguise magic or whatever you have and **cannot **hide!" Yaten's voice rose higher and higher the more he spoke. "What is wrong with you, Usagi? Don't you care about your friends anymore?"

"Of course I care!" She screamed at him.

"I haven't hung out with the girls in **two years**! I haven't seen Michiru-san, Haruka-san, Setsuna-san or Hotaru-chan since the battle with Galaxia!" Tears gathered in her eyes. "I haven't been to the Crown or the temple in so long..."

Her voice grew quiet. "I have to study so hard nowadays... I have to attend classes and go to my job and pay utility bills..."

She was rambling on now. Yaten couldn't shake his confusion. Didn't he believe that she left them for a reason? She obviously had one... she was in so much pain to be separated from them, but from what he was starting to understand, she believed she'd expect more _with_them.

He glared toward her then, making her look down. He felt sick inside. She always met people's eyes except when she felt she had done something truly wrong... Why was he questioning her? He believed in her!

He just glared harder when she didn't speak. Why wasn't she saying anything? Why wasn't she sticking up for herself!

The silence was too much for Yaten. He couldn't stand there and not know the answer as to why she was in pain. He couldn't just stand there being angry with himself, and taking it out on her.

Yaten stalked forward, grabbed a hold of her wrists, and yanked her towards him. She stumbled and nearly tripped as he did this, clearly not expecting him to take such an action. She looked up at him with wide, shocked eyes.

"Why did you have to leave them in the first place, Usagi? What have they ever done to you?" His eyes glittered with piercing anger, though it was more at his continuous attack on the moon princess than at the young woman. "Why have you abandoned them?"

_'Kami, stop attacking her!'_

"I never abandoned them!" Tears cascaded like small streams down her face. "Is it so wrong to want to have my own happiness? Am I not allowed to love who I want to?"

She looked hard into his eyes, silently begging for understanding. "The others... The others want me to love Mamoru, but I don't. They want me to be with him, to become Queen of Crystal Tokyo in the Thirtieth century.." He felt her trying to pull her hands free, but he held fast and strong. He wasn't going to let go of her; not even if the world would end if he didn't. "But I can't! I don't love him! I love someone else!"

"Who do you love, then?" He blurted out.

There was a long pause. He could tell she was weighing, or trying to weigh, her options of telling him.

Yaten felt his heart ache. _'You baka!'_ His mind screamed at him._ 'Why did you have to ask that? If she doesn't love Mamoru, she'll love Sei-'_

He didn't see her tears fading, or that she had looked to the ground. But, he did hear her voice as she spoke something that both shocked him, and sent his heart flying.

What she whispered to him was clearly not what he had expected, and, due to his shock, he loosened his hold on her wrists.

"W-What?"

Whatever reverie she had been in broke at the sound of his voice. With an amazing amount of strength Yaten didn't know she possessed, Usagi pulled out of his grip, turned, and fled from his sight.

The last thing he felt was her pained rejection before her star seed numbed.


	3. Real

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon!

Enjoy the story!

Beta-corrected: Midnight's Violet Haze! She's amazing :D!

* * *

The full moon shone brilliantly in the night, making the stars look somewhat dull in comparison. She stood with an uncharacteristically impassive look on her face. Her long hair ruffled only slightly by the wind.

She remembered it as if it were yesterday. It was the day when her old life of fun, warmth and peace ended; and a new one of loneliness, pain and resolve began.

* * *

_Everyone had gathered at Rei's temple, waiting patiently-impatiently for a certain charm-selling woman in particular-like they had done many times before. The only difference was that this was not a discussion about an enemy; it was a meeting Usagi had specifically asked for._

"I... I need to tell you all something important." _She had said._

_The girls were worried. Usagi __**never**__ called meetings. It just wasn't her! She would rather avoid them at all costs!_

_However, their princess had done some strange things as of late. Eating healthier, acting a little less childish... and studying! __**Studying**__ (Haruka and Michiru had spotted her reading an English-to-Japanese book in the park one early, sunny Saturday morning a few months back)!_

_Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru sat at the table on the side facing the door, with Hotaru between them. Setsuna stood dutifully behind them against the wall, a stoic look on her face, but curiosity etched in her eyes. The other four girls crowded the table, leaving one edge open for Usagi._

_Haruka checked her watch. "It's one o'clock now, just like she said."_

_Rei snorted. "You know she will be late. This is__** Usagi**__ we're talking about, here."_

_Everyone else sweat dropped, remembering that their princess was, indeed, someone who was tardy often._

_"I'm not late this time, Rei-chan," a soft voice sounded behind her._

_All eyes in the room turned to the sliding door. And there she was, their princess, standing regally before them in the doorway. She wore a blue skirt with a short sleeve, sugar pink, button-up blouse. In her hair were little pink bows that made her seem more childishly innocent than what they usually thought of her._

_She was different from the Usagi they all knew, however. She looked battle-worn and possessed watery eyes, as if she were trying not to cry; those beautiful blue orbs reflected guilt and not-yet-explained loneliness. Her whole demeanor screamed sadness and withheld pain._

_There was absolutely no trace of the bubbly happiness they were all so used to._

_The scouts looked at their princess with concern. What could make her this sad?_

_Slowly, Usagi walked-surprisingly gracefully-to the open seat and sat formally in front of them, hands in her lap, and head held high. She met each of her friends' gazes before she spoke._

_"I have something important to say." Her voice was thick with suppressed emotion. "I-"_

_"Wait, Usagi-chan," Makoto interrupted. At the blonde's confused stare, she continued, "What about Mamoru-kun? Shouldn't we wait for him?"_

_The Moon princess visibly stiffened. "No... no, he will not come."_

_"Is this about him?" The princess of Uranus growled. "Did he do something to you?"_

_Usagi's eyes widened at the accusation. How could Haruka ever believe that Mamoru would harm her? Sure, he has emotionally harmed her in the past, but there were reasons for that!_

_She tilted her head down slightly, her gaze meeting the table. "No... he didn't do anything." She paused before looking in Haruka's direction. "I did."_

_That surprised everyone, if the shocked facial expressions were anything to go by._

_Usagi hurt someone? How was that even possible?_

_"What are you talking about, Usagi?" Rei asked cautiously._

_Usagi looked down. "I... I fell in love with someone else," she admitted quietly._

_"WHAT?" Everyone all but gasped or screamed._

_"But you can't!" Makoto cried._

_"What about Crystal Tokyo?" Amy questioned._

_"And Chibiusa-chan!" Hotaru added._

_Usagi flinched at the tone of their voices, but Haruka's voice is what caused the tears to fall._

_"You cannot seriously tell us that the battles we fought, to preserve our peaceful future, were in vain, because you're selfish enough to throw it away for not only yourself, but for all of us, as well."_

_A small sob fell from the princess' lips before Usagi's hand could lift to stop it. Haruka was immediately guilty for her gruff words, but, being the proud and stubborn woman she is, would not take them back._

_The Moon Princess shot to her feet, almost glaring at the sandy-haired woman. The tears, sadness, and undying guilt were evident in her voice when she spoke._

_"I always put your happiness before mine! I've given up the fight against enemies for you countless times, at the expense of my powers and my life! All I ever wanted was to make you all happy!"_

_She scrubbed her eyes, trying to rid herself of her tears. "But... But..." She pulled her hands away from her face and pressed them to her heart, staring intently at them all. "What about my happiness? What if I don't want to be with Mamoru-san in the future, or even now! I love Chibiusa, but I know she would want me to be happy, too! Don't you?"_

_No one said anything at first, too overwhelmed by the shock of her words._

_Usagi, for her part, waited anxiously to be accepted by her friends for her decision. It was a really hard decision to even come to in the first place, she thought, so the natural thing to expect was that her friends would support her._

_The same thing did not occur to the other scouts, however._

_In their minds, the scouts did not see this as normal behavior from the blonde. To them, she would have never thought about something like this before the battle with Chaos, before the Starlights..._

_"It's Seiya, isn't it?" Rei suddenly blurted out._

_Everyone turned to Usagi._

_"Is it Seiya?" she asked again. "Did you fall in love with Seiya Kou?"_

_Usagi stood there, a stunned expression on her face. Of course, with the lack of a proper denial, the girls jumped to the wrong conclusion._

_"Usagi, Seiya was just a disguise! He's actually a girl, and a senshi from another Galaxy at that!" Ami desperately tried to make her princess see the truth._

_The blonde said nothing._

_"Please try to understand," Michiru's voice was soft and comforting, as if trying to calm down a screaming child. "You're giving your heart to someone who could never give us a happy future."_

_Usagi looked away, not wanting to believe what she was hearing._

_"They won't be coming back, Usagi. Not ever." Haruka's voice was cold and absolute; she would not yield on what she believed should happen._

_No one said anything for several moments. Then..._

_"You don't... respect my wish for happiness?" Her voice was just above a whisper._

_No one met her eyes._

_Setsuna sympathized with her princess, but then she remembered everything that her princess would throw away, how she would willingly defied the destiny laid out for her..._

_She snapped._

_"Your destiny is with Mamoru-san, Princess. It cannot be changed."_

_The odango-haired girl's look of betrayal had everyone frozen in their spots._

_"My future is not written in stone! It's what I make of it!"_

_Before anyone could stop her, she fled from the room, from the shrine..._

_She fled from their lives._

* * *

The blonde shook her head. Now was not the time to remember something like that; she had a personal mission tonight and she needed to fulfill it.

Usagi stood there clad in knee-length, navy blue jeans and a short-sleeve, button-up, white blouse and black shoes. Her senshi brooch was held firm in her hand, the knowledge of what it was and what it could do somehow helping her stay calm.

A part of the blond didn't understand why she was doing this. She knew the most-likely consequences; knew the risk of what could happen if things did not go in her favor.

And yet, she felt as if there was no other choice. She wanted to prove to herself that she had imagined him that night in the park; that he wasn't really here. As soon as she did that, she could return to her now "regular" life. She could concentrate. She could go back to school with her head held high, get her degree, her dream job...

All thoughts ceased as she stared up at _their_ building. Not a single trace of life could be seen from any of the windows.

_'Turn back now,'_ a voice inside her said. _'You'll break if you discover he's not there!'_

Usagi considered it for a moment. She didn't know how broken she really was, but she was aware of what she had gone through on her own. She didn't feel as if her sadness would be any different if she discovered that she really had hallucinated him, and he was truly not there.

A flash of his face made her resolve harden. _'No! I will not just turn away! If... If he's not there, then fine! I will deal with his absence... just as I have before.'_

But a part of her was too scared to march through the doors, too scared to ascend a few flights of stairs, too scared to stand in front of the door, and too scared to knock to see if anyone was there. If he was there.

"Moon Eternal! MAKE UP!"

She transformed.

A beautiful, warm light shone in the dark of the night. A colorful senshi uniform decorated the body of Tsukino Usagi with her scepter in hand. Using her skills as a senshi, she expertly made her way to the roof of the opposing building harmlessly, by jumping from balcony to balcony.

Subconsciously, Usagi noted that she was six or so stories higher than their apartment. Her eyes peered into what little she could see of one apartment room through their balcony doors, noting that the curtains were not drawn. Despite squinting her eyes, she could not distinguish any details about what was in the room.

Suddenly, Usagi caught a person's movement, and she held her breath.

_'Kami-sama, please don't let this be a trick!'_ Usagi thought desperately.

Much to her displeasure, the clouds she had not taken note of in the sky crept up from behind and passed over her. Slowly, they covered the other building in shadow... but not before she caught a glimpse of something shiny.

Had that been... silver?

Usagi desperately wanted to give a cry of frustration. Why had nature decided to shield her eyes now? Couldn't nature understand that she needed to see this? That this was a 'do or die' moment?

Sighing, the blonde relaxed. She didn't hate the moon for not being bright enough to shine through the clouds, nor did she hate the clouds for being thick and hiding the moonlight from that apartment. So, she supposed she should be grateful, instead.

She should be grateful the view was hidden from her eyes; to not see that she had been right all along. She didn't want it to be proven that she had hallucinated him.

* * *

Yaten woke with an unsettling feeling gnawing at his gut. His hair was free of his normal white ribbon, flowing freely under him and over his bare shoulders. His bangs clung to his forehead from the little beads of sweat decorating his face-much to his silent displeasure. He took a deep breath to calm the strange feeling as his hand reached over to his nightstand for the silk handkerchief he usually kept there (Seiya teased him about it countless times). He wiped the offending wetness from his face with a grimace. Once dry, he tossed the cloth away from himself, uncaring of where it ended up.

He sat up groggily and swung his legs over the edge of his bed, stretching out his muscles as he did so. He had been really tired as of late, due to poor sleeping habits...

Ever since he determined the state of Usagi's star seed, he either couldn't sleep, or, when he did, it was fitful. When on Kinmoku, his princess gently forced him to sleep with her calming scent. She was not, however, on Earth; thus, he was left to his own devices-no way in this, or any, universe would he ask for Seiya's or Taiki's help with getting him to sleep. When he did manage to sleep half-peacefully, all he could dream about was Usagi.

But then, that's who it was all about lately. Usagi. He always thought of her, always worried for her, always hoped for things that shouldn't happen.

He looked at his hands._ 'Why did you run from me, Usagi? I would never turn you away.'_

His gaze drifted from his hands to the glittering moonlight that shone through his balcony doors. As if he were being beckoned by such a light, and he honestly couldn't go back to sleep anyway, he stood and made his way over to the doors. He pushed them open, stepping out into the cool night.

A cool breeze sent a little chill over the exposed skin of his chest and arms; his light blue pajama pants covered his legs, leaving them unaffected. He looked up into the night sky, noticing that gray clouds now covered the moon. He scowled at them.

_'Don't cover such an important light.'_

As if afraid of the venom in his thought, the clouds slowly retreated. Bright twinkling stars peeked in the visible space, and his eyes couldn't help but become entranced by their shine. However, they paled in comparison to the moon when it was finally freed of the shadowed covering. The mere sight of it took his breath away.

A particularly cold breeze brushed over him, jolting him from his thoughts.

_'Baka! I shouldn't be outside. I have to search for her tomorrow!'_

The last thing he needed was to get sick and be unable to look for her.

Just as he turned away to go back inside, something caught his eye. Turning back around, he looked toward the moon once again. A small, bright, golden flash sparked again. It took him a bit of squinting, but soon he distinguished that the golden flash was in the center of a familiar silhouette.

His eyes widened in disbelief. "Sailor Moon!"

* * *

"Sailor Moon!"

Said senshi fell to her knees as he called up to her. Usagi hadn't imagined him, after all! Tears formed in her eyes and a smile spread across her face. He was there; he was real!

_'Yaten-kun...'_

Suddenly hit with the feeling of exhaustion and relief, Usagi's eyes drifted closed as she passed out, her body falling over the edge of the building.

* * *

Rei was pacing the floor of her bedroom. It had been about a week and a half since the arrival of the Starlights. The inners were floored when the outers had just dismissed them after offering to help the next day, refusing to accept help from and blaming the inners.

The outers weren't so affected. They saw it as two simple matters:

One, they wanted to search for Usagi on their own, and by their means. They might be willing to allow the inners to help them, but it wasn't guaranteed.

Two, they saw the Starlights as a threat. Though they did protect Usagi in the final battle, that didn't mean they weren't very serious, very real potential threats to their pre-destined, jovial future.

Any and all information requested about the Moon Princess was denied to anyone who asked the Three Lights. By now, all of the Earth senshi suspected them to know something about her whereabouts-though they had no proof of this.

"Rei," Makoto called, "stop pacing. You know it won't do any good."

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" The Princess of Mars huffed. "Our princess is out there!"

Minako looked at her fiery friend, asking, "Where are we supposed to look, Rei? We all know Usagi doesn't go around our usual hang outs anymore!" She sighed as she brushed a hand through her hair. "We don't... know much about her anymore."

"How do you figure? She can apply to school and change her appearance, but she can't change that she is Tsukino Usagi at heart."

"Rei-"

"I think we should leave her be." Ami cut in then, setting her cup of tea down on the coffee table.

"What!?" Rei exploded, outraged by her companion's suggestion.

"We can't just leave her alone!" Makoto chimed.

Ami sighed. "We already have," she said quietly. "For the past two years, we've all distanced ourselves from our mission to find Usagi because _she didn't want to be found._" She punctuated the last five words individually to get her point across.

The blue-haired woman looked determinedly at each of them in the eye. "I am studying to become a doctor at the medical college near Usagi's school. Minako, you're preparing to become an idol with Fumikiri Ishi. Rei, you're an official priestess here, but you're looking into becoming a voice actress. Makoto, you're becoming a five-star chef at the Tokyo University of Culinary Arts!

We're all following our dreams, and we've shown Usagi that we care about her by staying dedicated enough to her to try to find her for such a long time." The Princess of Mercury paused. "It's time we let her live her life the way she wants, with _whom_ she wants."

No one said anything after that.

* * *

A lone yellow car sped down the orange-toned streets of Tokyo in urgency.

"I know they found her," a sandy blonde growled aloud. "They found her and have her with them. Who knows what they could be doing to our future!"

A gentle hand placed itself on the blonde's arm. "Haruka, stop worrying. We'll get her back," a teal-haired woman assured her companion.

"It will not be so simple," the last passenger sitting in the car stated.

Two pairs of eyes locked briefly on the senshi of times' through the rear-view mirror.

She continued, "If she is, indeed, with the Starlights, it will be challenging to pull Usagi from them. She would not want to go, and we cannot be so sure the Starlights would _let_ her."

Silence enveloped the vehicle.

Michiru pushed back a lock of hair behind her ear, a thoughtful look pooling in her eyes. Four nights ago she had looking into her mirror in the late evening in hopes of seeing how her princess fared. Michiru had initially thought she'd be able to see nothing, as before, since Usagi's Lunar magic was stronger than the Neptunian's.

However, she was greeted with an image that unsettled her.

Through the mirror stood her princess, transformed as Sailor Moon. However, instead of a smile and a joyous expression, she saw a determined look; it was the sort she and Haruka had once had: to make it or break it. She didn't know what the young woman was so determined about, but that added to her unease, for she was torn: should she abide by her instincts as a scout and not interfere, or should she try to preserve a future that they all had fought to protect?

She didn't stay indecisive for long, though, due to the glimpse of another in her mirror.

The Princess of Neptune had seen Yaten Kou through her mirror, seemingly calling up to her. He hardened her resolve to keep destiny proceeding as it should.

In Michiru's mind, nothing would stop this mission.

"Michi," Haruka called. "We're here."

The artist nodded as she looked across the street, eyeing the Starlights' studio apartment building.

The women left the car behind and, upon making sure no one was around, transformed into their super senshi form.

"Let's go." Sailor Pluto nodded toward their destination.

Nodding also, the other two sped ahead, with the senshi of Time following close behind. The hope of not using force was futile; the Starlights were just as protective of Usagi as they were.

Suddenly, a figure landed in front of the outers, shouting,

"_Silent Wall!_"

Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto flew back as they met with the wall head-on, but quickly recovered and landed on their feet. Weapons held with firm grips, the three outer senshi were ready to fight, only to pause.

"Hotaru?"


	4. Tension Among Senshi

Thanks for being patient with me guys! You're amazing!

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon!

Beta-corrected: Midnight Violet Haze! She's really spectacular :D!

Enjoy!

* * *

_"Running away will never make you free."_

_~Kenny Loggins_

* * *

_'__It's been so long since I've been here...'_

Fingers trailed softly against the white marble, welcoming the cool sensation she was greeted with. Memories of so long ago, in another world from her own, today, flooded her mind.

One of her earliest memories was traveling to a large headstone, far beyond the places a small, four-year-old girl is allowed. She was accompanied with her mother and many people that she did not recognize. Her mother had stood off to the side of the headstone and talked about a person residing under the land. He was a wonderful leader and husband; he would be loved and cherished forever by the Lunarians who could never forget him. As young as she was, the small girl asked,

_"Can't we just help dig him up? Then he won't be missed!"_

That day was the first time she had ever seen her mother cry.

When she was seven, four other princesses of the inner court were introduced to her. Confused by the sudden meeting, she tried to stay by her mother, but eventually, she warmed up to the princess of Venus, who was bubbly and genuinely happy to meet her. In no time, she welcomed the others to play with her and the princess.

They were her first friends.

She would hear whispers throughout the next three years of how their close friendship didn't mean a thing; it was a political ploy to keep the Silver Millennium in check. She would ask about it a few weeks after her tenth birthday, no longer able to ignore the voices.

_"It is true that their primary duty is to be your guardians for the entirety of your and their lives,"_ her mother had told her softly, _"but there is a difference between duty and friendship; you'll find out the difference for yourself one day, my daughter."_

When she was twelve, she heard whispers again, but this time, they were about the senshi of the outer system. They were mysterious, and had never once made an effort to come to the Moon Kingdom. If Queen Serenity were asked her opinion of them, she would merely smile and say that they were trusted implicitly by her. She would wonder who they were often, but eventually, the thoughts would wane into nothing, and she would forget.

She also remembers traveling to Earth on her fourteenth birthday after escaping her guardians and palace guards, too curious about the planet's inhabitants; there was not a force that could have stopped her. She discovered many animals that did not inhabit the Moon, as well as plants and foods.

It was there she met... Prince Endymion.

The young woman sucked in a quick breath, hurriedly removing the memory of the man from her mind. She doesn't want to remember the downfall of that life, how she, he and everyone died...

She stood on the broken balcony, her gaze melancholic as she stared toward Earth.

_'I used to stand right here, gazing at the Earth, but in a different way...'_

She felt so guilty for hurting him. Knowing she had betrayed someone who loved her, and vice versa-even if it had been long forgiven-was not a pleasant feeling; it made her feel sick.

Her gaze moved itself to look up to the stars, like she has done so often before. Her mind once again settled, no longer troubled by the thoughts of before.

_'Who am I now, I wonder?'_ She ran her hand across the smooth marble once again. _'Have I changed so much from who I used to be?'_

She glanced to the Earth.

_'Or am I still the same?'_

"It is a beautiful night, isn't it?"

Her eyes snapped open in alarm and she whirled around, shocked beyond words to see the person standing there.

"It... can't be..."

* * *

_"Sailor Moon! Sailor Moon!" Sailor Star Healer violently shook the body she had placed on her bed. "__**Taiki! Seiya!**__" She screamed._

_Not a minute after the silver-haired woman called for them, a disheveled Seiya and Taiki Kou charged in, sleepy and alarmed at their friend's panicked scream._

_"What's wro-" Seiya started, but cut himself off at the sight before him. "Odango!"_

_"What's wrong with her, Healer?" Taiki demanded and, though worried out of his mind for the blonde, made his way to Healer's side, pulling the senshi away from the bed._

_"I-I don't know! Sailor Moon won't wake up!" Healer struggled hard to break free._

_"Odango, can you hear me? Wake up, Odango!"_

_"Seiya, don't-"_

_"Let me go, Taiki! Let me go!"_

_"Calm down, Healer! Hold still! Seiya, __**help me!**__"_

* * *

Chiba Mamoru was not the type of man to feel sorry for himself. He was a calm man with simple desires. Protectiveness was in his nature, but not overly so; he didn't obsess on a normal basis-he'd prefer not to remember the Dark Moon incident. He pursued his dreams, even when he knew of what future awaited him; he couldn't merely sit around and await that fate, after all.

He had accepted its existence and felt reassured, in a way, about what was to happen. The worry of what would happen next did not apply to him. He'd have a beautiful, loving wife, a smart, kind daughter, and a planet to rule. They'd have their kingdom and rule for eternity.

Well, he would have had that, if it hadn't been for Usagi changing all that.

She had come to him in the middle of the day, very obviously distressed and unable to meet his eye. He hadn't been able to speak a word before she had spoken the words that had shattered his heart,

_"Mamo-Mamo-cha-...Gomen ne, Mamoru, but I-I can't... be with you anymore. I-I don't love you, like I used too. We're over."_ He had seen the tears shining in her eyes, and saw the effort she was making to not bawl her eyes out. The tears didn't bother him so much as the truth and seriousness within those beautiful blue orbs. With shaking hands, she slipped the engagement ring off her ring finger and carefully put it into his palm. _"P-Please, please forgive me. Please."_

She ran from him, like he would find out later that she did to the senshi, and he never saw her again.

He hadn't been the same person since she left. He felt truly lost for the first time in his life. Mamoru knew his future changed drastically without Usagi in his life; it was likely that nothing would be the same as what had been shown.

He'd been angry, but only for a day. He couldn't stay upset with her, no matter what Usagi had done to him or their future.

Finally, he settled into an uneasy existence. Something, somehow, was keeping him from moving on. He knew it was over, and he knew there was nothing he could do to change her mind. Perhaps he should have fought harder for her... However, he knew that wouldn't have done much good. Usagi never stood up for anything seriously, save for her beliefs and for those precious to her. To stand up for her happiness, even if it could be considered selfish...

The Earth Prince respected her choice. He owed that much to her, from all the pain he had inflicted on her, despite her forgiving him for those mistakes.

Mamoru felt _their_presence as soon as they had entered the Earth's atmosphere; those foreign senshi that had been there during the last sailor battle...

He knew instantly what had kept him from moving on, and he knew what he had to do.

_'I'm coming for you, Usako,'_

* * *

"How is she doing?" Seiya whispered his question to Taiki as he stepped into the doorway, keeping his eyes on Yaten-who was kneeling on the floor beside the bed-and Usagi.

"She's fine," he replied, "She seems to merely be... sleeping."

"Have you checked...?" Seiya's question trailed off.

"Not yet."

They were all silent; hesitant. It was clear none of them wanted to check her star seed. No one in their right mind would want a second taste at the pain beneath its numbed state.

In the end, however, they did not have any other choice. They wanted to make sure it was still in a state where it could be healed.

For her, they'd endure any amount or ferocity of pain to ensure her well being.

Yaten took out his Star Yell, opening his mouth-

Suddenly, a white light emitted from the Moon Princess' body, engulfing the room in its brightness. The Three Lights gave a cry of surprise and shielded their eyes. As quickly as the light came, it was gone, and in its place, a glowing yellow sphere. That, too, gave way into nothing, revealing the doll-sized body of a woman. She had long, silver hair in the same style as Usagi's and dark, ocean blue eyes. She wore a long, flowing white dress, and had wings akin to those of a pixie's.

The woman smiled kindly at the dumbfounded trio. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Sailor Starlights."

Three sets of eyebrows furrowed almost simultaneously, and each looked down, only to gasp at their appearance. They were transformed!

"I'm sure you all have questions concerning Serenity-hime's health."

Fighter, the rashest of them all, pointed her Star Yell-that she had no idea how she obtained-at the small woman, only to falter. She floated just above Usagi's body, and she knew that if she attacked, Usagi would be hurt as well.

Maker, ever the calm one, stepped into the conversation first as her leader contemplated. "Who are you?" She asked, a cold edge to her voice.

"I am the former ruler of the Moon Kingdom during the Silver Millennium over one thousand years ago, Queen Serenity." The royal gestured with her hand to the blond's form. "This is my daughter, Princess Serenity, reincarnated."

Healer peered at the queen. "How are you...? Are you even...?"

"Am I alive?" Queen Serenity supplied, and Healer nodded. "Yes and no. I am not truly alive in the sense that you three are, but I live on within Serenity's heart and soul."

The underlying message was clear: _I have always been, and always will be, with her._

Fighter lowered her Star Yell, but only just slightly; her instincts would not allow her to guard down. "What's wrong with Odango?"

Queen Serenity looked down at her daughter, replying, "She's in a sleep that I've influenced her body to go under." Sensing their disapproval, and readiness to object, she continued, "I realize that my timing had not been perfect when I forced her to go unconscious; however, at the time, seeing you three would have been too much for her to make sense of. This whole ordeal has been very hard on Serenity; much harder than you know. She's caught in a crossroad, and she will not wake until she has come to an important conclusion."

Sailor Star Healer's face contorted in confusion. "A conclusion?"

Blue met green.

"If the path she has begun to choose is truly the one she wishes to stand by."

* * *

"This doesn't feel right," Makoto commented.

"What other choice do we have?" Rei asked.

"Not to come," she responded.

"Oh _come on-_"

"Rei," Ami cut in with a firm voice, "stop it. You can't blame her reluctance."

Rei glared at the senshi of Mercury. "I most certainly can," she protested.

Ami returned the glare with a fierce, determined stare of her own. "You're planning to persuade her-harshly, I might add-to make a choice she does not want to pursue!"

The priestess frowned at her friend. "She could just be confused! She was that way with the Three Lights here before!"

Minako, who had chosen to stay unusually quiet, finally decided to include herself, arguing, "Loving more than one person may be confusing, but actually loving someone **is not!**"

The senshi of Mars opened her mouth to retort, but paused, stopping short in her step.

_'Something's... not right,' _she thought.

Ami, noticing the raven-haired woman's look, stopped walking as well and asked, "What is it, Rei?"

"I feel a strange power just ahead of here."

A simultaneous nod from the four inner senshi had them running forward, with Rei slightly ahead. There were no need for words; warrior instincts guided them through their issues to face the potential enemy.

* * *

"Hotaru?"

The barrier dropped and the young woman stood proudly in front of them, her glaive held firm at her side.

The fourteen year old watched the women carefully, gauging their reaction to her presence.

_'Did they really think I wouldn't know where they were going, what they were going to do?'_ Hotaru wondered. _'I suppose I can understand that... I agreed with their reasoning before, after all, and haven't shown them otherwise, since that time...'_

"Hai, Setsuna-mama."

Uranus stepped forward. "Move out of the way, Hotaru! We are retrieving our princess!"

Saturn kept an even gaze with her papa. "I am sorry Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama, Setsuna-mama, but I will not."

Michiru looked positively perplexed that her child would rebel against herself, Haruka, and Setsuna. "Hotaru, her future is with us and Mamoru. She must rule Crystal Tokyo. She has prevented her future from happening thus far, but she cannot run forever."

"That may have been true, at one time," Saturn spoke softly, "but forcing her to do what you wish will ruin our princess, and I cannot allow that to happen," Saturn said softly, almost too softly for the others to hear. She twirled her glaive above her head before pointing it toward her parents. "If you wish to reach Usagi-san, you must first defeat me."

_'I don't want to fight you guys,'_ violet eyes conveyed, _'but I will if I must.'_

Uranus looked to her sword and thought hard. Could she attack her daughter once again? She acknowledged that she had done both once in their lifetime; Haruka and Michiru tried to prevent the Sovereign of Silence from coming-that failed, thankfully, because of Sailor Moon-and they had stolen their daughter's star seed to trick Sailor Galaxia into giving an opening to them.

_'There isn't an enemy to face this time, though,'_Uranus thought as she stared intently into Tomoe Hotaru's eyes.

The senshi of the wind turned her eyes to her partners, Sailor Neptune and Pluto, and knew immediately that they were thinking the same thing.

_'There isn't an enemy to fight,'_ Uranus gripped her sword tightly. _'But there is a strong trust to lose if I dare attack... and possibly a daughter.'_

Before any action could take place, a bright, pink light shone down from the skies above, landing smack in the middle of the tensed outers. The light's brilliance grew larger and larger, blinding all who looked at it and forcing their eyes away. When it finally died down, one individual was left in its wake.

It was a young lady with long, pink hair in pointed odangos and ruby eyes. She wore a white, short-sleeve top with a pink skirt, and red heels. She held a golden time key in her right hand for just a moment more before slipping it around her neck, as she had done many times before.

"No way..."

The person turned to the beyond-shocked fourteen year old. Hotaru's grip on her glaive relaxed considerably, her eyes wide in disbelief, her legs stiff and shaking in the attempt to keep herself standing.

"You're..."

The clicking of running heals caught the attention of those in the area, and they all turned to stare at the approaching transformed super inner senshi.

The four women came to an abrupt stop, however, upon seeing the young lady.

"Ch-Chibiusa?"

* * *

One more chapter left to go, guys! Are you excited?

*Reviews ensue a faster last chapter!*


	5. Acceptance

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon!

Enjoy the last chapter and thank you for reading, everyone! If you'd like a sequel, I have to get at least 10 reviews asking for it! 3

Special note: The beta-reader who corrected this story is Midnight's Violet Haze! Please check out her profile here!

* * *

"You... who are you?"

The figure merely asked, "Don't you recognize me?"

Usagi studied the person before her. The girl had a young, fair face-she guessed that the other was fourteen or fifteen years old. She wore a long, puff-sleeved, white gown with golden trimmings. Her hair was long and golden akin to the Sun's. She stood regally, but friendly, and her eyes...

Usagi's own eyes widened. Those blue depths that rivaled the skies were _her eyes!_ "You-You can't be _me!_" the young woman spluttered in shock, "_I_ am _me_!"

The girl nodded. "Yes, you are you, but I am a part of you-or more specifically, your past."

"My past?" The blonde murmured in question.

The girl responded with another small smile. "I am your past life, Princess Serenity," she paused, letting it sink into her reincarnation, before continuing, "The reason I am before you now is because you have lived too long with rejecting who you are."

"Who I am?" the other parroted.

Princess Serenity merely pointed over Usagi's shoulder. Following the princess's gaze, the college student turned around and was greeted with an image long unthought of.

_The lights of the kingdom shone brightly as the festivities continued in merriment, not a worry or care amongst any of the attendees. The finest music played almost non-stop, the chatter buzzed with a lightness fit for the party, and the best food offered a divine pleasantry to the tongue's taste buds. Many danced, some watched; not a soul would miss such an event._

_Except for two._

_Princess Serenity turned away from the sight before her, instead turning her head toward Prince Endymion: the love of her life. Sensing her gaze, the Earth prince's eyes sought hers, curious and questioning. The princess turned fully toward him, offering, with both hands, the greatest of treasures she ever received. The gift he gave her:_

_Her star locket._

_The young man faced her and reached out for the small object, taking it in his palm. He opened it with his other hand. Music began to play as a golden crescent moon spun slowly around a red circle on a silver background. The moon glowed, almost immediately, a pale yellow as the background reflected the image of the endless sky above them._

_The prince smiled softly, tenderly, toward the Moon Princess. She returned the smile before her eyes closed, his hand coming up to caress her cheek ever-so gently, her head tilting into his warm touch._

_The prince and the princess shared one last, loving embrace, before the scene changed to that of fire and destruction, screams of the princess's people filling the night sky and dead or nearly-dead bodies littering the ground. Princess Serenity witnessed the prince charging away to defend the Moon Kingdom and herself._

_"Endymion!" Princess screamed in anguish and protest, watching as his attempt failed so easily. She soon followed him in death, where she knew she would reunite with him._

Usagi's eyes were squinted and twitched with the effort to hold in her tears. This memory always made her want to cry.

"We loved each other so much back then..." The princess's gaze had a far-off look in them before she blinked and focused on Usagi once more, "For me, that has not changed. I love Endymion."

"But," Usagi cut in, "Endymion is not Mamoru. He's his past life."

"That may be so," the Moon princess agreed, "but I am not the only part of you with an attachment towards the Earth prince." Both pairs of ocean blue eyes looked to the right as a new scene played out for them.

* * *

"Ch-Chibiusa?" Sailor Mars stuttered, clearly surprised at the young girl's sudden appearance. "What are you doing here?"

The girl turned toward the pyro senshi. "Hm? Oh, Momma told me that I had to come back again."

"Why?" The senshi of flame asked.

Chibiusa shrugged, "Momma wouldn't really tell me any of the details."

Sailor Pluto walked toward the future princess, gripping her staff tightly in one hand; the only sign of her distress. "How does the future fare, Small Lady?"

The younger hesitated before answering slowly, "I'm not allowed to tell you, Puu. You know I can't."

"So the future **is **going to change," Uranus cut in sharply, jumping to conclusions. The sandy blonde turned toward her daughter. "Get out of my way, Hotaru!"

Upon hearing her Papa's gruff tone of voice, the smallest senshi sunk back into a defensive stance, her calculating, violet orbs on her parent. The Goddess Selene, herself, would strike Hotaru down before the violet-eyed senshi ever moved.

"What's going on?" Chibiusa turned to her best friend. "Hotaru-chan?"

Before the girl could respond, Sailor Jupiter cut in, "Nothing!" Upon noticing her heightened tone, she cleared her throat and tried again. "Nothing to concern yourself with, Chibiusa-chan."

Red eyes flashed with a spark of irritation. By the powers of the Ginzuishou, she hated being treated like a little kid!

"You're all transformed," she pointed out, "so there has to be a reason for it!"

No one met the eyes of the pinkette, mixed feelings of shame and resolve clouding their faces.

Chibiusa couldn't believe it. She wasn't an idiot; she could tell what was happening before her eyes-to an extent, at least. These brave warriors that fought and died over and over for peace, love, and justice in many life times... These soldiers her mother and herself entrusted their friendship and loyalty to...

Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

"You're not fighting an enemy, are you?" She accused them.

No one moved or said a word.

"Are you?" When she received no reply, she exclaimed incredulously, "You're turning against one another!"

She hoped for a vocal refusal to her claim, but when she received none, her eyes widened in shock.

"You can't!" she cried, "You're the Sailor Senshi! You have to always work together! If you don't, something terrible could happen!"

_'Is this what you meant by a "potential change to the future", Momma?'_

Sailor Uranus growled in frustration and rounded on the future princess. "You want to know why we're broken up this way? I'll tell you! K-"

"Don't!" Sailor Venus interrupted. "This isn't something she needs to hear!"

"We can't keep events as big as this from our future princess!" Sailor Neptune argued in a clipped tone.

"This will scare her!"

"Of course it will!" Mars snapped. "It has to do with her!"

"What will you do with telling Chibiusa?" Sailor Mercury questioned.

"She could convince Koneko to stay with Mamoru and forget that arrogant-"

"Don't insult our friends!" Sailor Jupiter warned fiercely.

"Friends?! They're _outsiders!_"

"That's not how you treated them in the end! You let them protect our princess!"

"In our stead! If even one of us had lived, it would have been better for her!"

* * *

_"Who are you?" _

_"My name is Usagi. Why are you crying?" A small Usagi asked as she looked curiously up at him._

_An equally small Mamoru looked down to the ground, stammering out in a watery voice, "Because my friend's leaving and I'll never see him again!" The young boy leaned forward a little, his eyes closing as he continued, "And... he's the only friend I've got!"_

_"No he isn't." Chibi-Mamoru looked to Chibi-Usagi. "'Cause from now on, I'll be your friend, too."_

_Chibi-Usagi stood up straight again. "My Mommy just had a baby boy today and I got these roses for her." She looked down at the bouquet of red roses in her hand before picking one out. She lifted it up to him and said, "Here, it's a present."_

_Chibi-Mamoru's eyes went wide and a small, red blush painted his cheeks, before cobalt orbs drooped and he smiled. "Thanks, Usagi." He reached out and gently took the rose from the little girl._

The older Usagi watched the scene with semi-tearful eyes. "I remember that," her voice wavered somewhat, "I heard crying. I couldn't resist going to see what was wrong."

"An adventurous little girl you were, then," Princess Serenity agreed. "That part of you hasn't gone away, though," she added.

Usagi looked ready to object, but a small, innocent yet calm voice interrupted,

"Mamo-chan and I will be friends forever, no matter what!"

Older eyes met those of Chibi-Usagi's, her mouth dropping open in surprise yet again.

Princess Serenity knelt down and scooped Chibi-Usagi up into her arms as the little one rushed toward her. Princess Serenity's delicate hand brushed away the bangs from Chibi-Usagi's eyes, enticing a childish coo from the little girl. "She is just as part of you as I am, Usagi; she can have her say, too."

* * *

Closing her eyes, her body slumped over the edge of the bed, her breath evening out as her consciousness faded. One gloved hand gently held onto a certain blonde's hand, as though refusing to let her go.

"Healer!"

Sailor Star Maker quickly knelt beside her friend, checking her over as Sailor Star Fighter shouted, "What have you done to Healer?!"

Queen Serenity explained, "Her anxiety levels are too high. If I had not put her to sleep, she would have fainted sometime soon."

Fighter moved to say something, but Maker objected, "She's right. Healer's no good for anything in this condition."

The leader of the three star senshi gazed at Usagi's mother, studying her carefully, looking for any signs of deceit. When she found none, she found herself relaxing, slowly.

She may have been small in size, but that did not make the queen any less of a woman. She was beautiful and kind; her stance was akin to Sailor Moon's. It was clear she cared for her daughter and even them, senshi of a galaxy she probably did not know of.

The raven-haired woman sighed, her eyes closing briefly.

_'How do I react to someone who reminds me so much of you, Odango?'_

Maker kept a watchful eye on Healer, but stole glances at the small queen out of the corner of her eye.

Queen Serenity did, indeed, have a similar appearance to Usagi, and yes, she gave off a similar, non-threatening vibe, but what if it was a trap to harm one or all of them? Maker couldn't shake the feeling that she was up to something. She had to be. Yes, she cared about her daughter, but surely that couldn't have been it? A woman of her stature-_how is it she's still around, anyway?_-wanting nothing but the happiness and well-being of everyone in the room? It seemed entirely too perfect.

_'Too much like Kakyuu-hime and Tsukino-san,'_ Maker added inwardly.

Queen Serenity suddenly looked down to her daughter's face, a soft, understanding look adorning her ever-calm features.

"What is it?" Fighter found herself asking the silver-haired woman.

The queen closed her eyes and replied, "I am being called."

"What do you mean?" Maker asked.

"She calls for me..." She looked to all three senshi, carefully memorizing their features, before smiling softly. "Please, grant me one request?"

Her tone, light with a plea that did not seem to bother her in the slightest and gentle in a way to put the softest of flower petals to shame, caused them to quietly say, "Anything."

What startled them most is, they _meant it._

_'She's truly worthy of her title,'_ Maker thought.

Fighter allowed a ghost of a smile appear on her lips. _'She really is Odango's mother.'_

"Take care of my daughter."

They all knew the queen need not ask that of them. The Starlights had protected Sailor Moon before; they would gladly do it again without a second thought.

Still, the two Starlights nodded, compelled to give the royal some sort of answer.

Queen Serenity gave a smile so soft and warm it made the two senshi suck in a shallow breath.

"Thank you, senshi of love and justice," she whispered, "thank you."

A soft, yellow sphere engulfed Queen Serenity of the Silver Millennium, and within seconds, she was gone, as though never having existed in the first place.

Fighter and Maker stared for what seemed like an eternity at the spot where the ancient royal once was, processing all that had just happened.

"She called us the 'senshi of love and justice,'" Fighter said dazedly, her dark blue eyes staring off to something only she could see.

Maker nodded, for that was all she could do. The brunette glanced down at Healer. What do you say to being recognized by a queen you've never fought for, but helps one of your own? What do you say to having her trust and gratitude by simply giving your word on protecting her daughter?

What do you say to merely being accepted?

* * *

_"I should have studied harder," the fourteen-year-old Usagi sighed, depressed. She really wanted that diamond ring._

_The blonde lifted the test paper again, grimacing at the horribly low percentage._

_"Oh, die!" she cried, crumpling the paper into a ball before tossing it over her head and walking on, clearly wanting to forget it had ever existed._

_"Hey, that hurts, Odango Atama," a voice called._

_Usagi stopped and turned around, "What? Oh, I'm sorry..."_

_Much to her dismay, he had straightened the paper out a bit and looked at her score._

_"Thirty percent!" His voice was clearly astonished. Who could get such a horrible score?_

_"Ahh!"_

_He looked up from the paper and stared her straight in the face behind dark sunglasses. "Study harder, Odango Atama."_

_Usagi's cheeks puffed with irritation. She let out a disbelieving huff. Who was he to judge her? "It's none of your business!" She snatched the test paper from him. Her index finger lowered the bottom of her left eyelid and she stuck out her tongue in a childish manner before she turned around and stomped off, clearly more annoyed now than depressed._

_"What's with him?! I can't believe it." She stopped briefly and turned around, staring at him for a moment. He was a tall young man, no older than 18 or 19, with short black hair. He wore a long-sleeve, green jacket, long grey pants, and brown shoes._

_"What a weirdo." she muttered to herself before walking off._

Usagi couldn't help but giggle at the scene. "I thought he was so weird when I first met him..."

"...and I fell in love with him that same night, when I first transformed into Sailor Moon and he was Tuxedo Mask," the fourteen-year-old Usagi finished, appearing at Princess Serenity's side.

Usagi looked to her younger self, regarding her quietly for a few moments, before meeting the eyes of her past self.

"Why show me all of these things?" she asked, "Why show me memories I already know?"

"To make a choice," the princess stated simply.

Usagi looked down, her tears finally spilling over. "But how can I, when both of them are so hard?" she asked in a watery voice. "If I continue as things were with Mamoru, it'll make everyone happy, and Chibiusa-chan will exist." Her hands moved to cross in front of her, gripping her arms. "But if I love Yaten, I'll make everyone unhappy, and they'll hate me. Even Mamoru will, for I would have killed a beautiful, innocent little girl who didn't deserve it."

"You will not," a new voice spoke. Usagi whirled around to see Queen Serenity standing calm before her, a motherly smile upon her face.

"What do you mean?" The blonde's voice quivered with rough emotion.

"Chibiusa will exist, but she will not come as was shown to you," Queen Serenity explained softly.

The confused college student blinked. "I don't understand..."

"No future is ever set in stone."

The blonde's eyes furrowed. "But, Setsuna-san-"

Queen Serenity gently interrupted, "She would not tell you this because she does not know what the future will be any longer, as it should have been from the start. For the sake of a peaceful future, you all were allowed to see that one possibility out of many."

Usagi put a hand to her forehead, trying to will away the oncoming headache before it fully arrived. What did this mean? Could she pursue Yaten now? Should she?

Princess Serenity gently let go of Chibi-Usagi, the little girl flying slowly to her oldest self and holding out her arms. Having experience with both Chibi-Chibi and Chibiusa, Usagi easily guided the girl into her arms protectively, as if shielding her from some undesired fate. Before she could realize it, however, three more pairs of arms wound around her. Usagi's eyes widened as she recognized Princess Serenity on her left, her fourteen-year-old self to her right, and Queen Serenity behind her.

_'It feels so warm,'_ Usagi thought, her eyes slowly closing as a bright light engulfed her.

* * *

Stories of the enemies they defeated, and how much more difficult it became with each new one, were bedtime tales to her as a child. With these stories, she became determined to have that, one day. She trained hard with each of the senshi, though more so with the Inners than the Outers; they had duties to guard their planets and the kingdom on Earth, of course.

As time wore on, she found the Amazon Quartet, and they became her loyal senshi and friends. She thought her team had achieved the greatness of the other senshi. She thought they were the next generation of senshi of love and justice.

She thought her team had become as magnificent as Usagi's.

She truly idolized them.

She thought them so strong. No one competed in all the universes. They were a united front; an impenetrable barrier. The need to protect one another grew stronger with every battle they faced, and long after peace had reigned. The same need reflected upon all of the innocent, and should Usagi believe an unjust enemy deserved it, the soldiers would follow her in healing them, or giving them a second chance, like Nehelenia.

The warriors became a family in almost every aspect. She knew she could depend on them whenever she needed them; they were unstoppable.

What a joke that turned out to be.

As Chibiusa watched the senshi's argument grow more and more heated, she couldn't help but feel let down and disappointed. These were the senshi she had dreamed of becoming for so long? Sure, she knew that none of them got along nor were accustomed to each other when they first met, but after years of battling and befriending one another, this is what came of all that time together?

Suddenly, she wanted the time she spent dreaming to be like them back. Sure, she knew friends fought and everything-she didn't always get along with the Quartet-but this, this was outrageous! She didn't even have to look at them-which she wasn't; she was just so ashamed to see them all turning on one another-to know that it was progressing somewhere too far. She could feel it.

What could she do, though? Tell them to stop? Neo-Queen Serenity specified that she not get involved; she was there in the past to witness what was to happen, not play a part in it.

_'But how can I, Momma? It hurts to see them this way! Why show me this?! This is just too cruel!'_

Chibiusa finally looked between the senshi as she moved off to the side. In front of the building stood Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mercury. Mirroring them in that same order stood Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Mars. A chill flowed through the darkening sky, sending a shiver down Small Lady's spine.

Her mother's order be damned, Chibiusa couldn't just stand by and let an all-out attack happen! The pinkette made to say something, but the senshi of the wind cut her off before she could even open her mouth.

"Get out of our way, you four!" Uranus ordered harshly. "We're going to bring back Usagi!" She was done with these back-and-forth games that were getting her nowhere! Her princess needed to be with _her senshi,_ not with **_outsiders!_**

"We won't let you!" Venus threw back. As a senshi, she understood that protecting their princess was one thing, but controlling her decisions was beyond their right! Even as friends, it was not their choice!

Uranus searched her daughter's eyes. "Are you really on their side, Hotaru?"

Sailor Saturn did not say a word in response, but her eyes posed challenge and determination. She would not move for anyone. Her princess deserved all the happiness she could get, wherever she chose to get it from.

So be it.

"_Space Sword!_" The bejeweled blade became red with power.

Following by example, the other three summoned their own power.

"_Submarine!_"

"_Dead!_"

"_Mars Flame!_"

The four senshi stalled their powers, silently giving them one last chance to move out of the way.

* * *

Fighter and Maker stood on either side of the kitchen window, watching the senshi battle unfold rather quickly down below. What could have possibly pushed them this far? Surely it couldn't be because Usagi was there with them!

Right?

The two Starlights made brief eye contact, communicating silently.

"I'll go," Fighter said after a few minutes, straightening.

Maker's eyes studied her leader briefly. The brunette knew that wasn't the best decision, and voiced her opinion.

"No, I should go."

The raven shook her head. "It's best if I go, Maker. I've had more contact with them." The taller opened her mouth and began to say something, but Fighter raised her hand to cut off her friend. "Don't worry," she said with a small smile, "Odango won't see this."

Without another word, Fighter turned and dashed to the front door.

Maker's eyes looked out the window and down to the senshi once again.

_'Let this stop before it begins, if for no one's sake but __**hers.**__'_

* * *

"Yamete!" Chibiusa cried, glancing between both sides of the senshi. No one met her gaze, but it was clear that they were listening. "Stop this fighting! There's no reason for it!"

"That isn't true!" Mars disagreed. "They are letting the princess destroy the future and _you,_Chibiusa!"

Young red eyes widened. "Wh-What?"

Venus shook her head. "That's not how it is!" She glanced to the pink-haired young woman. "Usagi-chan just wants to find her own happiness!"

"Our princess is risking our peaceful future and her daughter for that selfish reason!" Neptune stated coldly.

Jupiter defended her princess with confidence, "Usagi-chan is a selfless person! She can be selfish just this once!"

"Crystal Tokyo-" Uranus started.

Saturn interrupted, "The future is not for us to forcibly make happen, Papa! We're Usagi-san's senshi; we're to stand by her, no matter the decision!"

Pluto shook her head. "Separating Usagi-san from Mamoru-san will result in Small Lady's existence to never come to be."

Chibiusa froze. _'Not... existing?'_

Mercury looked to the young woman, seeing the stricken look in her eyes and frowning. She spoke fiercely in determination, "They're wrong, Chibiusa-chan!" When the young woman looked to her, she continued, "Usagi-chan and Mamoru-san will definitely find a way to make sure you exist! Please believe in them!"

Chibiusa stared at her a moment more before visibly relaxing, nodding and thinking, _'Usagi wouldn't let me disappear.'_

"That wouldn't need to happen if she stayed with **us.**"

Four sets of senshi eyes turned to Uranus, studying her body language. After a moment, they settled upon one thing:

She's serious. _They're_ serious.

"If you want to get to our princess..." Venus started

"Then you have to get through us!" Jupiter finished.

"_Venus Love and Beauty!_"

"_Jupiter Oak!_"

"_Mercury Aqua!_"

"**Yamero!**" A voice suddenly cut in, followed by a figure landing in between the inner and outer senshi.

Nine sets of eyes moved toward the form of the one and only Sailor Star Fighter, either relieved or unhappy with her sudden appearance.

To Small Lady, though, she could only frown in bewilderment at the unknown senshi's interruption.

* * *

Ocean blue eyes opened tiredly, the white ceiling above gradually coming into view. She felt heavy, as if it had been centuries since she had last moved around. She lifted one hand with effort, noticing it tremble, as if it had little energy.

At the same time, however, she felt eager-for what, she didn't know. She just knew she had to do **something.**

Deciding that her current thoughts were unimportant, she slowly rubbed her eyes as she sat up.

_'When did I go home?'_

"Ngh..."

She froze at the sound of another voice. Cautiously, her head turned to the side of the bed. What she saw made her freeze in an entirely different way.

There, hunched over in an uncomfortable position, Sailor Star Healer slept fitfully, her face scrunched in a deep frown.

Usagi's eyes softened as she smiled. "Did you watch over me?" she asked quietly, affectionately. As expected, she did not receive an answer, but that was alright. She wasn't about to wake the sleeping Starlight to receive one.

As if having a mind of its own, the blonde's hand gently reached out and grazed Healer's forehead, smoothing away her bangs. Healer's tense body relaxed somewhat, as though aware of Usagi's presence meaning no ill-will.

Her fingertips gently caressed Healer's exposed cheek, watching as the frown slipped away, a semi-contented look appearing on her now peaceful face.

"Thank you, Healer," she whispered. The blonde slipped out of the bed carefully, slowly standing. She waited a moment for the dizziness to go away-_How long have I been asleep?_-before grabbing the blanket and quietly walking around the bed. She draped the blanket over Healer's shoulders and stepped almost reluctantly away.

Her feet lead her to the door, but her eyes moved to look at the senshi's form for one last glimpse.

_'Thank you for watching over me,'_ she thought.

She didn't know where she was going, but somehow, her instincts guided her through the music studio's apartment. Soon, she came upon the kitchen, where she saw Sailor Star Maker standing in front of the window.

"Maker?" Her voice sounded scratchy and rough from disuse.

The taller woman spun around, her eyes wide open in disbelief. She only stared for a few seconds, though, before she was upon the blonde, looking her over as best as possible. Taking in only wrinkled clothing and a somewhat exhausted state, she relaxed and stepped back.

"How are you feeling, Tsukino-san?"

Usagi's hand went to her throat. "Parched," she croaked uncomfortably.

Reacting immediately, Maker went about getting her a glass of water. While the senshi was busy, Usagi walked toward the window, curious to see what-

"Tsukino-san," Maker called for her, distracting the blonde. She turned toward the taller woman and gratefully took the cup from her, gulping half of it down immediately.

"How long have I been asleep?" Usagi meant the question to be light, she really did, but the inquiry made the atmosphere suddenly heavy and dense. Unconsciously, she sipped her water again.

Sailor Star Maker didn't meet the Moon princess's gaze. "...Three days," she admitted reluctantly.

Ocean blue eyes bulged. "That long?!"

"Yes."

The brunette clearly didn't want to talk about it, so Usagi, for once, let it go. Instead she turned back toward the window, looking out into the sky. It wasn't too dark out, stars were beginning to come forth and be seen, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. No fireworks boomed or special balloons flew around in the sky. So what drew her attention? Usagi leaned a bit closer to the window as if she was to look down, but a sudden grip on her free hand drew her attention away.

Maker's eyes were firm yet protective. "Don't look down to the street, please."

Usagi peered curiously at Maker. "Why?"

The Starlight's mouth moved to say something, to respond to her question, but after thirty seconds of floundering, her mouth shut with an audible click.

"Why?" It was slightly firmer, suspicious; what could be down on the street that she shouldn't see?

When she received no reply, Usagi pulled her hand from the other's grasp and looked down.

**_Crash!_**

The drinking glass lay shattered to pieces on the floor, the remaining water now of no use.

"Wh-What are they doing!?" Usagi cried at last.

"Tsukino-san..." Maker eyed the young woman sympathetically.

Usagi trembled as visions of the past resurfaced in her mind. Death and war amongst senshi; the endless fight marring homes and kingdoms with their falsely meaningful destruction. Chaos in Galaxia's body taking her friends' lives one by one...

"_Moon Eternal! Make-Up!_"

Maker could only stare as the Moon senshi turned to her, a pained expression on her beautiful face.

"Maker..."

The brunette met Sailor Moon's gaze.

"Please help me stop my senshi."

* * *

Sailor Uranus's eyes burned with mixed emotions. Rage, disbelief, sadness, denial. How dare this senshi from another galaxy steal her princess away!? Did Fighter honestly believe after everything they had gone through, she could just take the Moon princess's heart, body and soul and leave?

Not on Uranus' life.

"You have some nerve," the sandy blonde growled.

Sailor Star Fighter's eyebrows furrowed. "What are you talking about?" she half-asked, half-demanded.

"If you think you're leaving with our princess, you're sorely mistaken!"

"Leaving? What are you talking about? I wouldn't take Odango anywhere she didn't want to go!"

"She doesn't know what she wants! She's confused!"

"Being _in love-_"

"_Koneko_ is **not** in love with **_you!_**"

Silence.

_'Is she serious?'_ the raven wondered. _'Does she really..?'_ When Uranus didn't move her cold, angered blue eyes from her form, her eyes widened. _'She does!'_

Fighter shook her head. "Of course she isn't!"

That got everyone's eyes on her, but she was used to it; she had once been an idol, after all.

_'Wow, that was easier to say out loud than I thought.'_

Blue eyes briefly flashed with astonishment with the agreement before hardening once more.

"Then you'll let her come with us. She-"

Fighter held up a hand. "Don't misunderstand. I said she wasn't in love with _me._ That doesn't mean she isn't in love with _**someone else.**_"

All hell broke loose.

"What do you mean it's not you?!" Uranus shouted.

Sailor Mars asked, "Who could it possibly be, if it isn't you?"

"Impossible!" Mercury gasped.

"Who is she in love with then?" Jupiter demanded.

Fighter tried to answered their questions and comments-"What do you mean I'm not worthy enough of her love!?"-but they kept coming faster and faster, more worried and insulting than the last. Within minutes, the Starlight had the makings of a headache.

"What is your name?"

Chibiusa's voice silenced the other senshi in an instant and drew dark sapphire eyes to her.

As Fighter gazed at the pinkette, the ex-idol couldn't help but see the resemblance between Chibiusa and Usagi. She looked like a sister or cousin of some sort... Fighter didn't remember ever seeing the girl around Usagi, though.

Of course, it struck the Starlight as odd that the pinkette stood before the senshi in regular street clothes. She didn't appear to be a sailor senshi, but looks can be deceiving; after all, Chibi Chibi was one.

_'Does she live outside of Tokyo?'_ Fighter wondered

"Sailor Star Fighter," the dark-haired woman finally answered.

"And your civilian name?"

"...Seiya Kou."

Chibiusa looked down to the pavement for a moment, as if trying to figure out where she heard that name before.

Meanwhile, Fighter turned back to the senshi, a deep frown on her face.

"Why are you guys attacking each other? Odango's up there sleeping! What would she say if she saw this?" The raven wasted no time in trying to make them see reason.

"No matter who she think she loves..."

_'Where have I heard that name before?'_

"No matter if you're lying or not..."

_'Where, where, where, wh-OH! That old album Momma has!'_

"I'm not lying! Odango doesn't love me!"

"We will not let her go!"

"Stop, Sailor-"

"_Blaster!_"

Red blades of power raced toward the startled Starlight. She brought up her Star Yell to attack, but suddenly, Sailor Saturn was in front of her, her glaive held out.

"_Silent Wall!_"

The two attacks clashed. Though Saturn protected Fighter, the force behind both of them sent both women back a few feet with Fighter's arms around the younger female protectively, barely keeping them upright.

"Saturn!" Chibiusa cried worriedly.

"I'm fine, Chibiusa-chan," Saturn reassured the girl with a small smile. She looked up at Fighter and thanked her. The other nodded before both turned serious and faced the other senshi.

Venus glared. "We won't let you attack our friends!"

Neptune returned the glare with one of her own. "And we won't let you stand in our way!"

"NO!" Chibiusa screamed.

It was too late.

"_Reflection!_"

"_Scream!_"

"_Sniper!_"

"_Shock!_"

"_Evolution!_"

"_Rhapsody!_"

"_Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!_"

Screams of shock sounded in the early night before a soft, golden light erupted from the center of the chaos, engulfing everything in its beauty. Warmth unlike anything they had ever felt before washed over them in soothing waves. It took away their anger and sorrow and pain and defensiveness and replaced them with nothing but boundless relief.

Then the light receded, leaving a clearly exhausted Sailor Moon leaning heavily against a very worried Sailor Star Maker.

The Moon princess's senshi stared on in amazement. Finally, after all their searching, she stood before them; a reassuring light in their worlds that banished their longing and negativity.

"Please, don't fight..." Sailor Moon's voice struggled to be loud and clear; she had been fine getting down here with adrenaline running but using her power had taken a lot out of her.

* * *

Luna, loathe as she was to admit it, didn't notice the changes at first.

Usagi was as bubbly as she ever had been. There wasn't a day when she showed up for school on time, spent most of her free time with her friends, ate lots of food, tripped over something or other daily, and went on dates with Mamoru. She smiled and laughed and joked and played every day. Everything was normal, everything was peaceful.

But then she stayed up late one night, stargazing.

Luna hadn't been worried in the slightest. Over the years, whenever Usagi got lost in looking up to the moon, she was daydreaming about Mamoru or wondering how she could solve a problem she had. Mamoru had decided to stay another year before going off to America for college like he planned, so naturally that was a big relief to everyone-most of all Usagi. Plus, Usagi was settling back into the "normal girl" routine after having just defeated Chaos and had her friends brought back only three weeks before. Naturally, Usagi had a lot to think about!

But the one night became two, then three, then four, five, six, and seven... It quickly became a ritual. A couple nights a week, she would just stare up into the night sky through her window.

After the eighth night, Luna finally acknowledged that this habit wasn't normal for the teen who loved to sleep. However, instead of speaking her mind then, she carefully watched the Moon princess. The blonde had, at first, stared up at the stars curiously, searchingly; as if they'd give a silent answer to a question the cat didn't know of. With each passing night that she ended up "answerless", her gaze took on a steadily-building confusion.

Two weeks of watching later, Luna found she couldn't keep silent anymore. So, when Usagi was an hour into her stargazing, the black cat gently asked her if anything was wrong. Usagi, clearly startled, turned to look her long-time friend in the eye. For a moment, there was silence; Luna watched Usagi's eyes flicker with mixed emotions-surprise, wonder, concern, and finally, realization. Tearing her eyes away, Usagi returned to gazing up to the twinkling stars and softly replied,

_"No, Luna-chan. I'm fine."_

The guardian hadn't responded, but she knew the Moon princess was lying; Luna would just wait and see if something else would happen.

She didn't have to wait long.

The black cat had tagged along on a trip to the Fruit Parlor Crown with the girls for some quality time together and refreshments. It had been a normal day like any other; sunny, warm, and busy. The girls were happy and chatty, talking about boys, school, homework, things they wanted to have and the like. It had only gone on for a half hour when Usagi suddenly became... **_different._**

"Mou, I wish Akira-kun would ask me out on a date!" Minako exclaimed childishly.

"He's unobtainable, Minako-chan," Makoto sighed. "He's got his eyes set on Yuriko-san."

"Yeah, but she isn't nearly as athletic as I am!" the blonde protested. "I mean, he and I play volleyball together!"

"You are on the school's team," Ami pointed out matter-of-factly, "and he isn't."

"I still have more in common with him than she does!"

"Akira-san and Yuriko-san spend more time with each other by participating in club activities after school."

The blonde slumped in her seat and sipped her drink, pouting at her blue-haired friend.

"You alright, Usagi?" Rei suddenly asked, gaining the attention of the others.

At the mention of her name, Usagi blinked back into focus, looking to her dark-haired friend. The shrine priestess repeated her question at the blonde princess' confused stare.

"Oh!" Usagi laughed jovially, only a touch of an embarrassed blush gracing her cheeks. "I'm fine! I was just... thinking about Mamo-chan."

Her pause went unnoticed.

The four inner senshi sighed and gave the Moon princess half-hearted, exasperated glares.

"You're never interested in guys anymore; not since Mamoru became your fiancé," Rei sighed.

"Yeah!" Minako agreed loudly, standing as she started her tirade. "What's with that, anyway!? Usagi's getting married while we don't even have boyfriends!" She plopped down as she finished with a huff, "Where's my prince charming?"

Usagi's eyes clouded with undecipherable emotion and opened her mouth to say something-

_"Yume no naka de nando mo,_  
_Sotto kuchizuke kawashita,_  
_Sukitooru tsubura na hitomi ni,_  
_Suikomarete iku..._

The Moon princess froze, eyes wide as she took in the voices of the Three Lights singing.

Before the others could even register Usagi's odd condition, Minako perked up with excitement. "It's one of the Three Lights's songs!" she squealed, "I love this one!" And with that, she began to sing along with the song.

**_"Kimi no naka de madoromu,_**  
**_Nukumori ni tsutsumarete sou,_**  
**_Aa itsu made mo samenaide to,_**  
**_Tsuraku sakebu-_**

"I have to go!" Usagi blurted out as she shot up from her seat, starling the others.

"Why?" Ami asked, perplexed; she, like the others, usually enjoyed when Minako sang-Usagi often joined in with the blonde, even!

"Mama asked me to do the laundry and I forgot!" The princess' lie rushed out nervously. "She'll kill me if I don't do it right away!" Before anyone could put in another word, Usagi bolted from the table and threw a "See you later!" over her shoulder as she left.

Luna knew better than to believe an excuse like that, but the other girls didn't; after all, they neither lived in nor often visited the Tsukino household to know what went on inside of it.

Usagi started another hobby four and a half weeks after "the incident" at the Fruit Parlor Crown. She took to visiting the attic at nights. At first, Luna didn't know why she would. Could she have missed Chibiusa that much? It had been a while since they all had last seen the pinkette...

However, Luna didn't truly believe that was the reason. So, knowing that Usagi would brush the cat's concern off, Luna set out for her own answers.

She crept silently through the crack in the doorway and into the attic, spotting Usagi's slumped form half-laying on the windowsill, half-sprawled across the bed. Assuming she was asleep-_With the way she's sleeping now, she is going to feel uncomfortable tomorrow_-the cat quickly jumped onto the bed and surveyed her princess's form. The blonde's left cheek, illuminated by the moonlight, rested on her arms at such an angle that if her cerulean eyes opened, she'd look directly up at the brightly-twinkling stars. Her face wore the most content expression Luna had seen on the girl's face in a while.

_'I won't get my answer tonight,'_ the black cat acknowledged. The feline turned away, intending to go back to Usagi's room and get some rest.

That's when she saw it.

A CD player set on repeat of... _Todokanu Omoi._

And that's when it clicked. Usagi Tsukino missed the Starlights.

Relief coursed through the guardian's veins. There really _was_nothing wrong! Usagi was just coping with the fact that the Three Lights were gone-it was understandable that she would be struggling and seeking out her current hobbies; she had never bid good friends like Taiki, Yaten, and Seiya good bye with the large possibility of never seeing them again before.

_'Once Usagi gets used to this feeling of missing a good friend, she'll be back to normal.'_

But she didn't go back to normal... and she didn't get used to her unfamiliar feelings.

Usagi began to avoid anything to do with the Starlights in public. If they came up in conversation, the blonde would change the subject. If she came across any merchandise that had to do with them, she'd make it a point to get as far away from it as possible.

Peculiarly enough, however, Usagi would still listen to their music in the attic almost every night while gazing up at the stars.

The black cat didn't understand, but she knew that if she pressed the issue, Usagi would know that Luna was concerned and put up more fronts than she already was. So the guardian did the only thing she could do: sit and watch.

Luna was taking her afternoon nap on the living room couch when she was awakened by the phone ringing. Since it was Sunday, there was no school, and thus it was no surprise to hear Usagi dash, most likely from the attic, down the stairs and grab the phone.

"Moshi moshi?" Usagi answered the phone. The blonde straightened. "Oh! Hi Mamo-chan!"

At the Earth prince's nickname, Luna's ears perked up, listening intently.

"Go out with you today?" Usagi's voice, which normally would have squealed in happiness at such an offering, sounded unsure, confused even. She paused, as if to actually consider the idea. Her pause, though, must have made Mamoru say something because Usagi was suddenly saying nervously, "Oh! No! I'm fine! I just..." Usagi trailed off.

By now, Luna had opened her eyes to watch the blonde, watching as her shoulders slumped and, though she couldn't see it through the blonde's eyes, the cat knew that Usagi was struggling.

"I... I can't today, Mamo-chan," Usagi muttered. "I'm not... feeling well." Pause. "Yeah, yeah I'll be okay. Don't worry about me. I'll just... get some rest." Another pause. "Yeah, I'll call you when I feel better. Mhm! Talk to you later, Mamo-chan! Bye bye!"

Luna watched in amazement as the princess hung up the phone and slowly trudged up the stairs to her bedroom to do as she told Mamoru.

_'There wasn't even an "I love you" from her,'_ Luna thought. _'That isn't like her.'_

Unable to hold back the need to know what was happening to the Moon princess, Luna jumped off the couch, padding over toward the hallway-

"Oh Luna-chan! Have you come to welcome me home?" Tsukino Ikuko greeted the feline as she entered through the front door. "Such a good kitty! Come on, I'll make you something nice to eat!" The blue-haired mother swooped down and picked up the cat, carrying Luna and her grocery bag into the kitchen.

"Why is it always so hard to get away from Ikuko-san?" Luna grumbled quietly as she padded her way to Usagi's room. She had stayed the whole rest of the day with Usagi's mother and now since dinner was over-Usagi hadn't even come eat!-Luna was finally free to get her answers from Usagi. What was going on with the teen? Why did the Starlights affect her so much? How come she's been avoiding anything about them or their civilian identities, save for the attic? Why did she avoid a date with Mamoru?

Luna peaked through the crack in Usagi's doorway, but the blonde wasn't anywhere to be found. _'Must be in the attic, then,'_ the cat thought. The black feline walked away from Usagi's bedroom and up the stairs into the attic, her demand for answers and how worried she'd been already in mind. Just as she was about to enter the room, she heard something that broke the guardian's heart.

"I'm a horrible person, aren't I?"

_'What... How could she possibly think such a thing!?'_ Luna wondered, beyond shocked.

The feline couldn't stop herself as she quietly slipped into the room just enough to look at Usagi, who was too busy to notice her cat due to her eyes intently staring up at the stars.

"I've done something really terrible, and I can't make up for it..." Usagi's hands squeezed into fists. "I wonder, what would you say? Something like, "Whaaat? How can you possibly love me? You don't even know me!", right?"

Luna's eyes widened at the blonde's confession.

"Yeah, I'm sure you'd say that..." Usagi's voice grew quieter. "You would... _hate me,_ probably." Luna barely caught the last of what the blonde said and it made the guardian's eyes soften with sympathy.

_'Usagi-chan... is this why you've been acting strange? You've fallen for someone else?'_

Usagi bowed her head in shame and her shoulders gradually began to shake.

"I want to see you!" Usagi cried, tears falling fast from the princess's crystal blue eyes. "I want to see you, Yaten-kun!"

Luna backed out of the room and sat down in the hallway, completely stunned.

So, this is what Luna had been seeing this whole time. Usagi falling out of love with Mamoru... and in love with the memory of Yaten Kou-Sailor Star Healer.

To the feline's astonishment, this new piece of knowledge didn't bother her in the slightest. She was neither for nor against Usagi's new feelings. It wasn't her place to be, either; she was merely a guardian and friend watching over Queen Serenity's daughter.

There was only one thing that _did_ bother the cat: What would happen next?

The guardian watched as Usagi bustled around the room in search of her other sock that she had had in her hand only a moment ago. It was around 1 o'clock and Usagi had promised to meet Mamoru at his place today. However, she was a bit... delayed... thanks to her current problem.

"Ahhh!" Usagi cried out in frustration, rubbing her hair furiously. "Where is my sock!?"

"Did you check in your closet, Usagi?" Luna asked, not bothering to hide her amusement from her voice. "You went in with two socks and came out only wearing one."

"Ah!" Usagi's eyes widened in realisation, not at all noticing that Luna was snickering at her. The blonde ran into her closet and rummaged around until she found it. She came out, bouncing around, trying to pull on her sock. After thirty seconds and more snickering from Luna, Usagi finally managed to put her sock on right.

Luna watched Usagi walk to stand in front of her mirror and check herself over, a thoughtful look on the young woman's beautiful face. For a moment, the Moon princess stared into her reflection's eyes, having a silent conversation with herself that resulted in sadness creeping into those pure eyes. Luna, who had witnessed the look, felt her amusement fade as sadness weighed over her own heart.

And then Usagi was okay again. She nodded to herself and then headed toward her bedroom door.

"Usagi-chan," the guardian called.

The princess stopped but didn't turn around.

"I'm going to Ami-chan's tonight," Luna told the young woman. "I'll see you tomorrow, ne?"

After a second's pause, the blonde turned back to her cat and rushed to her, enveloping the guardian in a tight, yet shaky grasp. The hold, to Luna, felt like it lasted for an eternity, yet it wasn't nearly enough to bring comfort to the cat.

"Yeah, I'll... I'll see you tomorrow." Usagi replied.

Luna knew, however, that she wouldn't.

The next time the black cat saw her princess, it was at a brief meeting with all of the sailor senshi present. Then she was gone, never to be seen again.

That is, until now.

Luna watched Sailor Moon jump into the fray between her friends and successfully cancel out their powers. _'So strong,'_Luna noted. And the senshi of the Moon was. To do that... was nothing short of amazing.

The black cat smiled softly. _'You've finally stopped running away.'_

"Are we going home, Luna-chan?"

The black cat looked to her companion. Like herself, Artemis accepted the situation for what it was; they both could be there to morally support the senshi with their troubles but, in all fairness, remain neutral and not at all influence the girls' decisions one way or another. After all, they were all old enough to choose for themselves what they wanted to do.

Besides, as long as the guardians of love and justice followed their hearts, everything would end up alright.

Luna nodded. "Yes, Artemis. Let's go home."

And with that, the two cats left the sailor senshi to decide their own future.

* * *

Sailor Mercury collapsed to her knees. "Usagi-chan..."

Sailor Venus and Jupiter flashed each other truly jovial smiles before training their sights on Sailor Moon.

"Koneko..." Uranus murmured so quietly, she, herself, could barely hear it.

Sailor Neptune grasped Sailor Uranus' hand immediately for support, keeping both herself and her partner from falling to the ground.

_'You're alright, princess,'_ the senshi of the sea thought, relieved.

Sailor Pluto's red eyes widened, one hand releasing her staff as the other dropped the head of it to the ground unconsciously.

Sailor Mars' knees buckled, but she didn't fall. "You..." Her eyes teared up. "You Odango Atama!" she cried, not unkindly.

Hotaru used her staff as she half-leaned against it to keep from collapsing. She smiled a true, bright smile as her forehead came to rest against the staff. "Usagi-san..."

Sailor Star Maker held Sailor Moon up with some difficulty. The other senshi was weakening; she could feel it. Sailor Moon hadn't had a proper meal in days and that meant she didn't have the energy to deal with this issue properly.

But Maker couldn't stop her. She knew that.

"Please, don't fight," Sailor Moon said again, "we aren't enemies to one another; we're all friends."

Wrong thing to say.

Uranus yanked her hand out of Neptune's and pointed at the senshi holding Sailor Moon up. "I am not friends with those outsiders, and neither should you be! You should have stayed away from them like we told you too; none of this would have happened!"

Ami slowly rose to her feet. "No," she said coolly. She'd had enough of Uranus bashing her friends. "The Starlights are our friends; our allies. We entrusted them in keeping our princess safe in the battle against Chaos, and they succeeded."

"We didn't entrust them to poison our princess' mind with false puppy love," Michiru retorted.

Sailor Jupiter glared as she stepped forward. "It's not puppy love, it's true love!"

"You can't be sure of that, now can you?" Uranus shot.

"Please, stop!" the blonde princess' words fell on deaf ears.

Sailor Mars studied Sailor Moon as she tried to stop the verbal abuse but to no avail. Her princess felt... different.

Steady.

"Who is the Starlight you love so much," Mars began, voice eerily calm, "that you would throw away our future and your own flesh and blood for?"

Sailor Moon turned Mars, only to follow the pyro senshi's pointed finger to Chibiusa's frozen form. Red and blue eyes clashed in a silent battle of questions and reassurances.

"Chibiusa..."

Sailor Uranus raised her sword once more, catching the eyes of everyone-especially Fighter.

"What do you plan to do with that?!" the raven-haired Starlight barked, thinking the worst: She would raise her sword to both her teammate **_and_** Sailor Moon.

The sandy blonde pointed her sword at Sailor Star Maker and snarled, "Get your hands off our princess, Starlight."

The senshi in question was not intimidated. "No," she refused simply, her arms tightening around the Moon senshi's body.

"_**Get away from her!**_" Sailor Uranus roared, finally snapping. She ran at the brunette and jumped, letting out a battle cry as she brought her sword down, intending to injure the defiant woman.

"NO!" Sailor Moon pushed herself in front of the brunette, arms out to take the blow.

"_Sailor Moon!_"

A silver blur appeared before Sailor Moon just before impact and pushed her, sending both the blonde and the brunette back against the pavement.

_Plip... Plip..._

"Are you alright, Sailor Moon, Maker?" the silver-haired senshi asked with her back to the two, blood trickling steadily down her arm and onto the asphalt.

Maker, mindful of the blonde's now dizzy state, slowly sat them up. "Yes," the brunette replied, "We're fine."

Healer nodded before she promptly fell to her knees at the answer, hissing in pain as her right hand flew to her she held her right hand over the wound.

"Healer!" Sailor Moon cried out, quickly gathering her bearings, "Are you alright?!"

The senshi of the wind gazed down at her sword in shock and disbelief. She could have... hurt her princess.

She almost **_did._**

Sailor Mercury immediately moved in front the silver-haired Starlight and inspected the wound. After a moment, she told the shorter woman, "You need to get this cleaned and stitched up as soon as possible or else you might get an infection."

Alarmed at the blue-haired woman's diagnosis, Sailor Moon moved to step around and take a look herself, only to stop at the head of Sailor Pluto's staff at her neck.

"Do not take another step forward, Princess," The dark-skinned woman ordered.

Suddenly, the time senshi's head twisted away, hair covering her face, hissing slightly in pain and her staff lowering to the ground. Whatever hurt Sailor Pluto was fast, but not fast enough to escape the Moon princess' eyes. She had seen this many times over her years as a sailor senshi; she couldn't miss it even if she were blind.

Cerulean eyes lowered to see a red rose with sharp thorns impaled into the road.

As quick as lightning, her head jerked to the left, and her eyes widened as she saw the form of Tuxedo Mask reveal himself from behind a lamppost.

With a hardened voice, the dark-haired man spoke, "Do not overstep your boundaries, Sailor Senshi. Sailor Moon is, and always will be, your princess; do not forget that."

Movement caught his dark brown eyes and he turned his gaze to the Moon senshi. Tuxedo Mask watched as the blonde princess moved to Sailor Star Healer's side, half in front of her and half beside her, the princess' gaze flicking back and forth between the wound and the silver-haired woman's grassy green orbs.

"Are you alright?" the blonde asked uncertainly, worriedly; she wasn't sure what to do, but the need to help was evident.

"I'm fine," the taller grunted. When her words did nothing to relax the blonde, she conceded, "You heard Mercury; I just need to get it stitched up and I'll be fine."

The dark-haired man watched Healer closely. Her cheeks were flushed the faintest of pinks, her body slightly relaxed with Sailor Moon so near. The look in her eyes was... _warm._

Sailor Pluto turned her gaze toward him, a small, thin, red line on her left cheek.

"Save Small Lady," she pleaded with him to understand; to do what she thought was right.

At the mention of his daughter, he looked ahead to see her on the edge of the group. She stood uncertain and lost; helpless. Her eyes were trained on Sailor Moon and Sailor Star Healer, fear sparkling in her red orbs as she sought guidance from the blonde senshi of what to do.

Mamoru wanted guidance, too.

When he didn't immediately jump in to do as Pluto asked, the senshi of Mars barked, "Why are you just standing there!? Take Sailor Moon away from here!"

"He won't _force_ Usagi-chan into doing anything she doesn't _want_ too," Sailor Jupiter snapped at her friend.

Sailor Neptune hid her mouth behind her mirror as she turned her mirror toward Sailor Jupiter. "You can't stop us from saving our future," she promised in a mockingly sweet tone.

Sailor Jupiter smirked, eyes glinting gleefully at the challenge to prove her strength. "You can't stop us from protecting our princess."

"Are you saying you want to fight me?" the senshi of the sea asked.

"That's exactly what I'm saying," the other said lowly.

Sailor Neptune's mirror began to glow as Sailor Jupiter's antenna emerged with lightning crackling around it.

"_**Enough!**_"

The crescent on Sailor Moon's forehead glowed in reaction to her emotions. Her power surged and engulfed her in a circle white light that reached for the heavens, blinding as well as awing everyone who saw it.

_'No more deceit. No more agony. No more fighting.'_ Sailor Moon promised silently as her eyes slid shut. Upon making the promise, the light surrounding the Moon senshi shattered, leaving angelic white feathers with a rainbow hue to them in its wake. _'It's time to end this!'_

The feathers instantly surrounded the blonde's body, circling around her at such a high speed that the other senshi, when finally able to look upon the princess, could only see a rainbow colored blur.

And then the feathers were exploding away from her, trying to get as far away as possible, as if being near her would destroy them. Sailor Moon's eyes snapped open to see the shocked faces of her beloved friends-no doubt surprised to see her holding her tier, as if it had never been broken by Chaos. Extending her scepter to it's highest length, she bellowed,

"_Silver Moon Crystal Power!_"

* * *

Tuxedo Mask wandered through the ancient ruins of the Moon Kingdom, avoiding several pieces of rubble as he went. This place brought back so many memories. Images of forbidden love, secret meetings, and death flooded to the forefront of his mind. He could see himself standing beneath Princess Serenity's balcony, softly confessing how he yearned to be closer to the blonde beauty and how he wished the kingdoms ran differently.

Now was no different.

Mamoru wanted to take Usagi into his arms and hold her close and show her in every way possible that he loved her. He wanted to hear her call him "Mamo-chan" and cling off his arm. He wanted her to blush and say she loved him.

"You seem to know your way around," a sudden voice commented.

The masked man turned to look into the eyes of one of the Starlights, though he didn't know her name.

"How?"

The inquiry was not demanding or suspicious, but merely curious; so he answered, "This is the ruins of the Moon Kingdom one thousand years ago. My past life, Prince Endymion of Earth, used to travel here quite often to see Princess Serenity, the only heir to the Moon Kingdom."

If the Starlight was surprised, she didn't show it. "How did you meet the Moon princess if you two lived in separate worlds?"

"Princess Serenity broke Lunarian law and snuck to Earth." He gave the barest hints of a smile. "It was love at first sight."

"..." The senshi remained quiet, choosing not to say a word.

The two walked on in silence, neither comfortable nor uncomfortable in the other's presence, for a few moments before Tuxedo Mask glanced over at the senshi.

"What is your name?" the man asked. "I do not believe we were ever introduced properly."

"Sailor Star Maker of Kinmoku."

Uranus scanned the terrain with a determined gaze. She didn't have any memories of the Silver Millennium, but she did have a feeling of where she should go-years of being Sailor Uranus taught her that her instincts were rarely ever wrong and should always be relied on.

_'Who would want to remember how they died in a past life anyway?'_

Looking around again, she frowned. It was hard to believe a kingdom as mighty and great as the Moon's had fallen to a fairly weak evil-but then again, it wasn't a time made to prepare for war but preserve peace.

A microscopic part of her wondered where she and Neptune were in their past life when the Silver Millennium fell. Why hadn't they protected the Moon? Why hadn't they defeated the evil then? Pluto wasn't giving up that information, either.

"Your past should be just that; your past," she had told the wind senshi.

Sailor Uranus supposed it didn't matter anyway. She was here now, duty demanding she protect Sailor Moon. Even though she recognized the thought, she couldn't help thinking it a poor excuse for-

_Crunch._

Reacting immediately, the sandy blonde swung her arm around and aimed for her sword, half-coated in dried blood, to cut off the unknown person's head, only to have her wrist caught and held firmly mere centimeters away from a slightly tanned neck.

"Whoa!"

Blue eyes narrowed in anger. "What are _you_ doing here, _**Fighter?**_" she demanded, yanking her arm free of the raven-haired woman's grasp.

"Well **_Uranus,_**" Sailor Star Fighter drawled in a condescending tone, much to the blonde's annoyance, "Sailor Moon summoned us _all_ here, so _that's_ why."

The wind senshi chose not to respond, instead facing the direction she had been before and continuing on. Much to her displeasure, the leader of the Starlights trailed after the blonde, occasionally looking around at her surroundings.

Haruka was content with staying silent until she found Usagi, but the woman following her, of course, was not.

"So..." the dark-haired woman started, "how glad are you that it isn't me Odango is in love with?"

"Immensely." Haruka replied flatly.

"Hey! I'm not a bad person to be in love with! I'm smart, funny, cool-"

"Shut up, Fighter," the other growled, a vein popping in her forehead.

The Starlight puffed out her chest arrogantly, "It's alright to be jealous-"

"Shut up!"

Sailor Star Fighter chuckled, happy to see the other senshi back to her stubborn self. She looked down, a sneaky grin on her face as she was about to say something else when she spotted the sword in the Outer senshi's hand-the same sword that had almost wounded Sailor Moon.

"...Can you accept her choice, now?" Fighter asked seriously, all traces of amusement gone from her voice.

The blonde didn't respond. Fighter wasn't going to give up, though.

"Can you accept that she loves-"

"Stop," Sailor Uranus commanded lowly. To her surprise, the other didn't press the issue more; she didn't need too.

Heels clicked along the floor of what used to be the hallway to the throne room. The senshi stared straight ahead, lost completely in her thoughts. Had she been wrong in her position in this situation? She hadn't felt like it before; she thought she was doing the right thing. But then she saw how Sailor Moon treated Sailor Star Healer... and it made her doubt herself.

She felt lost now, a feeling she disliked greatly. She liked to be sure of things; it helped her focus on battles and daily tasks alike.

"Mars!"

The senshi in question stopped and turned to see Mercury, Venus, and Neptune approach her.

"Minna..." the violet-eyed woman mumbled, unsure of what to say.

Venus, reading the uncertainty in the fire senshi's tone, smiles reassuringly at her friend and gave her a hug.

"It's okay, Rei-chan," she whispered soothingly.

Sailor Mars was still uncertain, "But..."

Sailor Venus pulled back and gave the pyro senshi's shoulders a comforting squeeze. "Everything will be alright, don't worry."

As an added reassurance, Ami added, "When Usagi-chan follows her heart, only good things can come out of it."

Sailor Mars finally relaxed. "Yeah, you're right." She gave a smile. "That odango can't do anything without us, so we better hurry to meet her."

The blonde senshi positively beamed at her friend's recovery. Without a moment's hesitation, she pulled Sailor Mercury and Sailor Mars into a tight embrace.

Sailor Neptune hid her amused smile behind her mirror as she watched the exchange. _'They are so easy to reassure,'_ she thought. _'But... something isn't right, still. The seas are completely still-something that shouldn't happen.'_ She paused. _'They await... her decision.'_

"What are you doing over there, Neptune!?" Venus demanded, startling the teal-haired woman from her thoughts.

"Pardon?"

"Come here!" Venus' hand reached out and grabbed Neptune's, pulling the Outer senshi into the group hug, oblivious to the other three staring at her as if she had grown a second head.

All three of them were heading to somewhere they didn't know; they just knew where to go. Like an instinct. They walked down an archway leading inside the broken palace. It was so familiar, yet so different, from the future; the teen wondered what it must have been like to live there on the Moon one thousand years ago. Was it a happy time? Was it sad?

Was it as confusing as now?

Chibiusa looked to Sailor Jupiter, who was entirely too tense as she walked stiffly towards their destination. The pink-haired teenager knew that Jupiter was angry because of the brunette's forcibly silent nature; she only became this way when she knew she would explode rashly if she tried to express herself by any means.

The red-eyed teenager's gaze flicked to her other side at Sailor Pluto, who, similarly to Sailor Jupiter, walked silently; she could tell the difference, though. Unlike Jupiter, Pluto was focusing on something in her thoughts and on-successfully-not provoking the other woman. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice Chibiusa's stare-_**which really said something**_ to the future princess.

Chibiusa looked away, opting to stare forward instead. _'What should I do? I don't understand what's going on...'_

And she didn't. She only received bits of information in this whole situation. A feeling of déjà vu pooled in her chest as she recalled the last time the sailor senshi went up against Queen Nehelenia-the only difference now was that _Usagi_ was the threat to her existence.

_'How do you handle... not being wanted?'_

At the sudden thought, Chibiusa's eyes widened. _'I want... I want to exist! I want to live!'_ Her heart pounded in her ears, drowning out everything else. What could she do in order to live? Plead Usagi for her life, even when the blonde didn't want to have the future shown to her from before? Would that be right? Would that be wrong? How did Mamo-chan feel about this, really?

"Chibiusa?"

The pinkette snapped out of her frantic thoughts and stared into the worried face of Sailor Jupiter.

"You alright?" she asked. "You stopped walking."

On cue, red eyed glanced away from the brunette to meet those of the time senshi's a couple feet away.

Chibiusa opened her mouth-to say, "I'm okay," or "I'm worried," she wasn't sure-but closed it with an audible click a second later, finding herself unable to respond properly.

Sailor Jupiter searched the teenager's face for something the shorter woman did not know of. After a moment, the brunette relaxed and smiled gently. "You're anxious, right? About what's going on with Usagi-chan?"

The pink-haired teenager lowered her gaze to the ground, ashamed.

The taller woman patted Chibiusa's shoulders as she straightened. "It'll be alright, Chibiusa-chan." _You will be alright._

"Small Lady..." The teen turn her now tear-filled eyes in Setsuna's direction. The older woman hesitated, carefully thinking over her words. She didn't want to tell the teenager something she didn't truly believe, but she didn't want the pinkette to feel upset, either.

"Sailor Mercury... what did she tell you?"

Chibiusa appeared to be confused for a moment, either not understanding the question or not remembering what the blue-haired senshi had said, before understanding flicked in her eyes. "Ami-chan... told me to... to believe in Usagi and Mamo-chan." She said it slowly, as if to remind herself more than to inform her precious friend.

The dark-skinned woman wasn't so sure she could do that. She loved Small Lady more than anything and anyone else in the entire universe. She also loved her princess, the one whose kindness went unrivaled and whose forgiveness baffled even her closest friends. No, she couldn't believe in her princess; no matter how much she had done.

But she could give the moon princess the chance to prove her wrong.

"Come, Small Lady," Pluto beckoned with her hand outstretched toward the teenager. "Let us go greet the Princess and hear her decision."

Smiling happily-in such a way that made Pluto recall the sweet, innocent child of not so long ago-Chibiusa rushed over and took her hand, grasping it warmly.

Sailor Jupiter let out a breath with a small smile on her face. She was a little envious of the way the two got along; almost like a mother and her child would. Maybe, just maybe, she, too, could experience something like that.

"Jupiter?" Blinking, the brunette looked to the pinkette, and then at the outstretched hand. "Come on! We've gotta find Usagi!"

After a moment of shock, the brunette chuckled, then crossed the short distance to Chibiusa and took the offered hand. It didn't matter that the young woman was just a few inches shorter and no longer a little girl; this sort of support always comforted the pinkette and both of the older women were all-too-happy to oblige in putting her at ease.

"Hai. Let's go."

_'Did I fall asleep with my earbuds in again?'_ Usagi wondered. _'I'm probably late for class...'_

She shifted and turned her head on her pillow, mumbling nonsense. A hand sifted through her hair, soothingly petting her golden locks, the touch silently whispering for her to fall back into a sweet dreamland. The Moon princess cuddled her head into the warm pillow, trying to get comfortable with it's warm surface-

Wait a minute. **_Warm?_**

Usagi's blue eyes snapped open and she jolted up in shock. She wasn't, in fact, a teenager in bed not wanting to get up, but instead her head had been lying... in... Sailor Star Healer's lap. She missed the silver-haired woman's equally shocked look, though more for the blonde's sudden movement than anything else, when the blonde felt her head rush and tipped forward a bit, groaning in discomfort.

Healer rest her gloved hand on Usagi's shoulder and squeezed it. "Are you alright?" she asked, to which she received a nod after a few minutes. "Good."

Silence.

_'Well,'_ Usagi thought. _'This is awkward.'_

And it really was. What was she supposed to say to the person she loved?

Luckily for her, Healer seemed to already have something she wanted to discuss.

"Where are we?"

Although Sailor Moon already knew that answer, she looked around at her surroundings as she replied, "It looks like we're in the throne room of the Moon Kingdom."

It was a vast room-or rather, a shambled version of what _used_ to be a room. The ground, colored a soft silver, was cracked in several places and littered with pieces of stone. The ceiling was that of the starry night sky, having not had a roof for quite some time. There were white marble pillars around the two senshi: some only just barely standing, others completely destroyed, and few standing upright with little more than scratches and little nicks of stone missing. Unsurprisingly, there was nothing overly special or regal about the room; after all, it _had_ been a thousand years.

"The Moon kingdom?" Healer questioned curiously.

The blonde looked to the silver-haired woman. "Yes. One thousand years ago, there was an era of peace called the Silver Millennium which existed thanks to an alliance between the inner and outer planets. The Moon Kingdom was the heart of the alliance and governed over the entire universe."

Though Sailor Star Healer's instincts were more inclined to believe Sailor Moon, she stuck to her nature and voiced her doubt. "And how do you know this? If this kingdom existed one thousand years ago, as you said, how would you know of it?"

Sailor Moon smiled. "Because I am the reincarnation of Princess Serenity, daughter of Queen Serenity, ruler of the Moon Kingdom, and the one and only heir to the throne."

_"No way! Why? Why? For us?" Healer asked imploringly, helplessly, beyond confused as to why the inner senshi saved the likes of them._

_Sailor Mercury weakly turned her head toward Sailor Star Healer and, with her chest rising up and down heavily, quietly responded, "To save important people."_

_"Important people?" Sailor Star Maker echoed, trying to understand._

_"Yes, both Sailor Moon and Starlights are important to us." Venus answered, smiling at the end of her explanation as she began to disappear._

_"No way! Even if you might fade away?" Sailor Star Fighter exclaimed incredulously._

_Sailor Jupiter gaspingly pleaded, "Please in our place protect Usagi-chan and this world!"_

_'So this is their duty,'_ Healer mentally nodded at the recalled memories. _'This is the other reason why the sailor senshi are so protective of her; she is truly their princess.'_

_"We've survived again." Maker stated, all traces of hope for the situation to become better gone from her voice. "The number of sacrifices increases without avenging our Princess."_

_"As our Princess said, without finding the Light of Hope... we can't defeat Galaxia." Healer's head drooped resignedly._

_"That's not true!"_

_Fighter's head shot up in the direction of Sailor Saturn. Said senshi turned and looked determinedly into the Starlights' eyes and asked, "Do you like Sailor Moon?"_

_At the question, Sailor Moon raised her head to look at Sailor Star Fighter, wanting to know an answer to that, as well. The question grabbed the attention of the other two Starlights and Pluto as they, too, turned to the raven-haired woman for an answer._

_Sailor Star Fighter turned fully toward the young senshi and, after a moment of silence, she smiled and said, "Yes, I do."_

_Sailor Moon's eyes widened in amazement._

_Sailor Saturn relaxed as she stepped toward Fighter, a smile on her face. "Good. We seem to have the same hope!" The raven-haired Starlight looked down as Saturn clasped her hands together. Earnestly, she said with a smile, "Please believe in our Princess!"_

Sailor Moon stood up and wrapped her arms loosely around herself. "I feel like I came home..." she paused, "But it's not home any more."

Before Healer could comment on that, the senshi of the Moon walked to one of the few, sturdy marble pillars-how were these pillars still up after one thousand _years,_ anyway?-and leaned against it. Healer stepped up beside the other, body stiffening, ready to grab the Moon senshi and pull her out of the way should the pillar collapse from the sudden weight-though she doubted it would; for some odd reason, she had a feeling that it wouldn't give way because it was Sailor Moon leaning against it.

"A long time ago, I used to stare out at the Earth," Usagi said quietly, as if she were afraid if she spoke any louder, she would wake up from a dream. "In my past life, I wanted to experience the wonders of the blue planet; the only planet not truly a part of the Silver Millennium."

"Why?" Healer found herself asking, though to what, she didn't know.

Sailor Moon took a guess anyway. "The Silver Millennium didn't have evil; there was no hatred or vengeance or injustice or lust for power. However, the Negaverse had already wrapped the Earth in its clutches, forever tainting mankind from being eternally pure. The planets refused to accept mankind into the Silver Millennium; they didn't want evil to spread throughout the universe and touch their homes. Queen Serenity, though she sympathised with the Earth, agreed and made it forbidden for anyone from any planet to visit the blue planet." The blonde paused for a moment before continuing, "That, of course, didn't stop me from breaking the rules."

The Starlight raised an eyebrow, but otherwise made no verbal comment.

Usagi responded. "One day, I finally escaped the palace guards and my ever-watchful guardians and snuck away to Earth. It was there I met... Prince Endymion." At this, her eyes grew out of focus, as though she were watching the memory. "It was love at first sight... a love so forbidden, it brought about the end of the Silver Millennium."

The silver-haired woman frowned. "Isn't that a bit melodramatic?" she asked, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

Sailor Moon shook her head. "Not at all," she denied easily. "Like I said, it was forbidden. Endymion and myself were never supposed to have met, let alone love each other. But because of what I did, I accidentally crushed Beryl's heart."

When Sailor Moon didn't seem inclined to explain further, Healer demanded, rather impatiently, "Well? What happened?"

Sailor Moon looked reluctant to answer, her eyes showing just how she didn't want to go into the details. When Healer didn't take back what she said, Sailor Moon repressed a sigh and explained, "Beryl was a low-level sorceress who fell in love with Prince Endymion. However, since he and I grew to love each other, her heart was shattered. With her so vulnerable, the darker parts of her humanity sparked and attracted the Negaverse. She became Queen Beryl and, with the powers of the Negaverse, destroyed the Moon Kingdom." The blonde stopped. Healer opened her mouth to prompt more from her, but Sailor Moon pressed forward with obvious difficulty. "She killed Prince Endymion, myself, my guardians, and my people. My mother used the ginzuishou-" Sailor Moon traced her broach softly at this, "and all the power she could muster to send all of us to Earth to live normal lives. She died just after that."

Sailor Star Healer didn't fail to notice the sound of regret in the blonde's voice. Healer knew that if you regretted something, you had to feel guilty for not doing something else.

And she wouldn't stand for Usagi to be that way.

"You can't blame yourself, Usagi."

Cerulean blue eyes widened in shock-either at her saying something comforting or calling the blonde senshi by her given name, Healer didn't know-and her head snapped around to face the taller senshi. An intelligent, "Eh?" escaped her mouth.

"You can't blame yourself, Usagi." Though Healer wasn't fond of repeating herself, she supposed she could make an exception. "Beryl chose her own fate; she could have respected your and his decision, but she didn't and became evil. She deserved whatever she got."

"She is dead. She can't start her life over and live a happy life." The melancholy tone in Sailor Moon's voice shouldn't have surprised the silver-haired woman, but it did.

_'The truth behind her words is stunning,'_ Healer thought. She had never met someone so... pure... in her entire life.

And then a lightbulb went off in Healer's head.

Her reason for being here! She was supposed to-

"Your wound!" Sailor Moon gasped as her eyes fell on the Starlights' shoulder. "It's gone!"

Jade eyes widened, her train of thought forgotten as she looked down at her shoulder. The blonde was right; it was gone. Even the blood! The only thing that remained the tear in her collar on her sailor fuku; nothing that couldn't be easily fixed.

Healer's eyes drooped halfway closed as she felt a sweet warmth spread from her heart and throughout her entire body.

"I'm not surprised," Healer murmured, her gaze moving to meet Usagi's and holding it. "You're rather extraordinary, Sailor Moon-no, Usagi."

As she looked into the eyes of her heart's keeper, Usagi found that she couldn't look away. She could feel her heart rate pick up.

That look in those jade eyes... so soft yet so concerned... Could Healer really care for her?

Did Usagi dare to hope that she did?

Healer watched Sailor Moon's cerulean eyes sparkle with different emotions; curiosity, wonder, confusion, longing.

Slowly, so as to not startle her, Healer lifted a gloved hand to gently cup the blonde's cheek. Usagi's head tilted into the gloved palm, relishing in the affectionate touch as a light blush dusted across her cheeks, and let out a small, contented sigh, her eyes closing as she did.

Suddenly, Healer was assaulted by the yearning she felt before. She desired to hold the Moon princess in her arms, to feel her soft, pink lips against her own, to run her bare hands through soft, golden tresses. She wanted to heal the shorter woman with her love-

Wait.

Heal.

**_Heal!_**

And that's when the Starlight remembered her reason for being in this universe. She didn't come here by choice or to have a vacation; she had a mission to complete. Yet even as she acknowledged this, the utterly tender, trusting look Usagi was giving the silver-haired woman made her hesitate.

Sailor Star Healer didn't want to break the moment. The moment she wanted too badly; a moment for just them. And Sailor Moon didn't look like she was objecting by any means.

But she had to. For both of them.

"Usagi..." Healer's voice didn't take on the firm and formal tone as she wished; no, it came out as gentle with a tinge of her reluctance to break the moment.

Sailor Moon's eyes slowly opened to look into Healer's grassy green ones.

The Starlight's breath caught in her throat. The beauty those endlessly kind eyes possessed was second to none in all the universes.

Carefully slow so she gave the blond time to pull away, Healer tilted the blonde's head up just a bit and leaned in. Realizing what the older woman wanted, and most certainly not objecting, Usagi's eyes drifted closed once again, her cheeks burning a dark pink. Usagi's lips tingled as she felt Healer's just a hair's width away-

"Princess. Healer."

And the moment was shattered.

Like lightning had struck them, Sailor Moon and Sailor Star Healer jumped apart, bright red blushes engulfing their faces. It was obvious that Sailor Moon was embarrassed for being seen in such an intimate position, whereas Sailor Star Healer looked rather irritated she couldn't prolong it.

Sailor Saturn gazed at the two before half-turning towards the entrance which she came in from; a hallway that surprisingly was intact and shrouded in shadows.

"Everyone is here, Princess." Sailor Saturn informed Sailor Moon in a calm, steady voice.

Just as she said, the sailor senshi and Mamoru filed into the exposed throne room one by one. Mamoru stood several feet away directly in front of Sailor Moon, Chibiusa at his side. To Mamoru's right stood, in order, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, and Mars. To Chibiusa's left-after an obvious gap-stood Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus. Saturn spared a glance to her princess before walking over and taking her place beside Chibiusa. Fighter and Maker stood a little off to the side, just a few feet away but still within sight, on either side of Healer.

Sailor Moon looked into the eyes of each and every one of the people in front of her before settling on Healer's for just a moment. Blue and grassy green communicated silently for just a moment, wanting assurances and answers to unvoiced questions, before Usagi began to speak.

"I... I don't really know what to say," Usagi admitted. "I never thought we, as the Sailor Senshi, would turn on each other-worse than when we had met, even! And all over what I did..." She paused. "What I didn't do."

"Please come back to us and your future, Koneko-chan!" Uranus' voice, gruff with emotion, was on the borderline of pleading.

Sailor Moon regarded her ally for a moment before saying softly, "Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, Mars... the reason why you're so adamant on me and Mamoru being together and making Crystal Tokyo happen..." Her gaze swept from each of the addressed senshi before looking to the others. "Saturn, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus... although you didn't agree with me in the beginning-and now do-that I should choose for myself what I wanted to do... you all..."

She paused.

"You're all scared of losing me, aren't you?"

None of the addressed senshi met their princess' gaze.

Usagi smiled knowingly. "It's alright. You will never lose me. You will always, **_always,_** be put first."

A few of the senshi gave relieved smiles, whereas the others just let their relief show through their eyes.

They were finally put at ease.

"Usako."

Sailor Moon's smile dimmed, becoming apologetic; regretful, even. As she looked at the man who used to hold her heart, she knew that this was his final attempt to get her back. Yet at the same time, his chocolate brown eyes asked the one thing she knew would give him peace of mind-for why else would he be here, if not to have either her or inner peace?

She dare not refuse him closure when he needed it most.

"No, Mamoru," Usagi shook her head slowly. "I can no longer be your Usako. I love-someone else." She paused, unsure, for only a split second on whether or not she should say, before nodding slightly to herself.

"I'm in love with Yaten Kou-Sailor Star Healer."

Tuxedo Mask gave Sailor Moon a bittersweet smile. "I see." He nodded to her. "I understand."

His eyes spoke volumes. _Thank you for finally telling me; for setting me free. I wish you happiness with her._

The blonde princess' eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "Mamo-chan..."

"How can you say that?" A voice accused loudly, angrily, breaking the calming atmosphere and sending it into a tense one once again.

Sailor Moon turned to her new love, carefully trying to decipher the blazing look in those crisp green orbs.

When she didn't answer, Healer repeated herself. "How can you say that? That you love **Yaten Kou!**" She spat the idol name acidly. "How can you love my civilian form that I _only use on __**Earth!**_ It was a guise! It was fake! So how can you love me-" She gestured to her present senshi form. "-when you're in love with a part of me that isn't real!"

"You're wrong!" Sailor Moon shouted. Healer recoiled slightly, taken aback; the blonde had never yelled at her before! The Moon senshi plowed on. "Yaten Kou _is_real because he is a part of you! He protected his friends and kept up with his responsibilities and always did the right thing in the end! Sailor Star Healer protected her allies and assisted foreign sailor senshi and helped save the universe!

"**_Yaten Kou and Sailor Star Healer are one and the same!_**"

Crisp green orbs widened comically, clearly shocked beyond words. She hadn't expected such a strong reaction. She had expected to shake up Usagi's world; make her doubt. But the silver-haired woman failed in that.

The price for such a callous reaction came crashing down on Sailor Star Healer instantly in the form of an invisible tidal wave of pain. The shortest Starlight didn't notice her two companions suddenly looping their arms around her slim waist to make sure she didn't fall to her knees, nor the voices of everyone else in the vicinity call out in worry, as she struggled once again to get it all under control. However, unlike the times before, the pain would not be ignored this time; Healer would have to suffer through it.

It took all of her will to not scream out her in own pain. The blonde's agony spread like wildfire through her veins. She was in pain over having been the reason her senshi became so volatile that they attacked each other. She was in pain over having hurt Mamoru Chiba's feelings. She was in pain over being treated so harshly by her new love. She was in pain over being in love with someone she believed would never love her back.

_She was in so much __**agony.**_

It took several moments for the torment to finally end, and even more time for Healer's body to stop convulsing with the aftermath of her own affliction and to get her head on right. However when she did, Healer was seething-not just at Sailor Moon, but at herself, as well.

This woman doubted Healer's feelings for her!? After they almost _kissed!?_ But then again, Healer basically showed the blonde senshi she didn't really care about her when the silver-haired woman accused her of otherwise.

Healer wouldn't stand for it! She wouldn't allow them to both suffer from her mistakes! Her mind's eye flashed back to just a few minutes ago when Sailor Moon's affliction bombarded her being.

_'But first, to do what I came here for.'_

Healer stood up from her half-hunched position slowly and touched both Star Fighter's and Star Maker's arms. "I'm alright now," she said it softly so only they would hear and flashed a small smile, too quick for anyone else to see, before straightening and approaching Sailor Moon. Looking into the blonde's crystal blue orbs, and finding nothing but worry over Healer's current condition, made the shortest Starlight's heart melt.

_'She's so pure,'_ Healer thought. Then her own emerald ones hardened and she spoke clearly,

"We came to this universe for a reason, Sailor Moon; to see you."

Sailor Moon blinked in surprise. Now that the fact was presented to her, she didn't know what to think. She couldn't fathom a reason as to why they _would_ come visit her. Surely they had important duties to be seeing too?

"Why?" Sailor Moon questioned curiously.

Healer motioned to Sailor Moon's broach with her hand. "To heal your star seed."

"My... star seed?" Usagi asked, genuinely confused. There was something familiar with that choice of words. It was like she had heard them before...

Blue eyes widened slightly. _'Could it be... from the park?'_ she wondered.

Healer nodded. "Hai. Your star seed has been so heavily affected by your emotional agony that it now radiates it. I felt the intensity of it on Kinmoku in our universe."

There were collective gasps of shock.

"In order to heal your star seed, I need to summon it from you. If you summon it on your own-"

"No way in hell!" Uranus barked, gripping her sword tight. She didn't care if this woman had protected the Moon princess' or was her princess' new love; to ask what she was asking was an outrage and impossible.

By the tense stances of the other senshi who had witnessed how star seeds were taken before, she assumed that she was not the only one uncomfortable with the idea.

Healer ignored everyone else and looked the blonde in the eyes. "Do you trust me, Sailor Moon?"

"Yes." Sailor Moon replied immediately without hesitation. Her eyes closed in anticipation of what would happen next.

Sailor Star Healer gave the Moon princess a genuine smile. "Thank you," she said gratefully. She closed her eyes and concentrated. A faint, vibrant yellow light surrounded Healer, and a breath later, a pure silver, star-shaped star seed appeared in front of her chest-only this time, it shimmered strongly in a silvery white glow, instead of shining explosively with agony.

One glowing hand reached up to touch the blonde's golden broach-

"**Sailor Moon!**" Several voices cried out their worry, but no one-not even Uranus, who looked ready to jump at the Starlight-made a move.

Leather-clad fingers brushed over the broach, her power wafting out over the item and slowly coaxing out the magnificent jewel. What everyone saw next broke their hearts.

The ginzuishou, Sailor Moon's star seed, the crystal that had saved so many, was no longer the beautiful, flawless, diamond-like flower everyone had known it to be. Instead, the magnificent jewel appeared dull, dozens and dozens of small cracks littered all over the jewel, leaving one to wonder how it didn't just shatter into hundreds of little pieces. Where it had once glowed with power and pulsed with warm energy, it now looked haunted, lifeless, fragile; a rusted pipe looked far more precious than the nearly-dead crystal.

It was a hard sight to take in.

"Oh my kami," Mercury gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

Venus' jaw dropped, unable to comprehend what was right in front of her. "N-...No way!"

Jupiter's fists clenched at her sides; she desperately wanted to hit something.

Saturn fell to her knees, her body unable to support her weight.

Uranus averted her gaze, not wanting to face the truth.

Neptune grasped Uranus' wrist; whether to take comfort in the sandy blonde's presence beside her or trying to calm her lover, she didn't know.

Pluto's face became stony and impassive, but her eyes shimmered with regrets and what-ifs.

"Why... why didn't you come to us, you baka?!" Mars had intended to scream at the Moon princess, to get some sort of reaction, like always, but it came out a strangled whisper.

Mamoru tipped his hat forward, hiding his grimace.

Fighter's body shook but said nothing, her eyes brimmed with tears.

Maker stood rigidly, her stare not once wavering from the crystal.

"Usagi..." Chibiusa's tears fell freely from her red eyes.

Healer didn't look surprised in the least, but then, she didn't have time for surprise. She saw Sailor Moon's eyes grow out of focus and dull, the light of life in her dimming considerably. It almost looked as if she, herself, were dead in that moment.

But Healer knew she wasn't. She was just... numb. And the Starlight knew the Moon senshi would be.

Gingerly, Healer's left hand guided the silver crystal-barely noticing the extremely faint sparks of power glittering behind it as it moved-to her chest and enclosed both star seeds from sight. Healer's eyes fell closed, the power surrounding her slowly pushing itself to concentrate around her gloved hands.

And then Healer was tipping her head back, letting out a cry of effort, the power around her hands exploding out in all directions and blinding those who were watching.

All too sudden, though, the power was gone, leaving a heavily panting Starlight in its wake. Cautiously, she uncurled her hands, revealing Sailor Moon's star seed, good as new, and Healer's own star seed fading back into her body.

All on its own, the flower-shaped star seed floated back to Sailor Moon, pulsing with power and warmth that stretched out and awed everyone in sight before slipping back inside the heart-shaped broach. Immediately after, Sailor Moon's eyes snapped open, a look of awed wonder directed solely at Sailor Star Healer.

Finally catching her breath, the silver-haired Starlight threw the blonde a half-hearted glare. She could clearly tell what the blonde was thinking, even if she didn't voice it out loud; the look in her eyes said it all.

_Why would Healer do this for me?_

"Do you really not know, Sailor Moon?" Healer half-asked, half-demanded. "Do you really not know how I feel?"

"I..." Sailor Moon didn't know how to respond, so she didn't say anything.

Healer closed the remaining distance between the two, wrapped an arm around her waist, pulled Usagi flush against her body and closed the gap between their lips. Usagi's mind exploded then, unable to form a single coherent thought. She had never felt such passion in her life! Her heart raced as she kissed back just as passionately, fire bursting through her veins as Healer's arm tightened around her just slightly at her response. Healer bit softly at Sailor Moon's lower lip, making the blonde gasp. Eagerly, the silver-haired woman's tongue slipped into the shorter woman's mouth and explored freely. Usagi couldn't stop the low moan that sounded in her throat and promptly blushed as red as a tomato.

Finally, the need for air forced the two apart, both panting.

Usagi, with eyes glazed over in pleasure, thought idly, _'I've never been kissed like _that_ before!'_

Healer smirked smugly at Usagi, clearly seeing the look, making the shorter woman blush even redder.

"I guess I should be going then, right Puu?"

All eyes turned to Chibiusa, the one who had spoken, and to Sailor Pluto, who nodded from where she stood.

Usagi's eyes immediately became worried. "Go?" she asked, confused.

Chibiusa nodded. "I have too. I don't belong in this time."

Usagi suddenly looked guilty. "Chibiusa, I..."

The pinkette held up her hand. "Don't." The blonde's mouth clicked shut. "Usagi, I... I admit that I was scared; I want to exist. I don't want to disappear. But since I'm not dead now... that means you and Mamo-chan make sure I am born, somehow, in the future." The teenager smiled brightly to her mother. "I believe in you two."

Sailor Moon clasped her hands in front of her and nodded. "Yeah. Don't worry, Chibiusa-chan,"

"We'll make sure you exist." Mamoru finished, smiling to his daughter.

Stepping back a couple of steps, Chibiusa lifted the time key from and called out, "Listen, guardian of time and space! Open its gate, cracking the sky in front of me! I am calling your name, almighty God of time and space, guardian father, Cronos!" Her time key glowed before a ball of pink energy shot from the key into the sky. "Please lead me! Please protect me! Open up the light way in front of me!" A tower of pink light appeared behind Small Lady. The pinkette turned and took a step toward it, but paused.

"Chibiusa-chan?"

The teenager in question turned to look at the blonde princess of the Moon and waved. "Bye-bye for now, Momma. Be happy."

Usagi couldn't stop a lone tear from falling down her cheek. "Ja ne, Chibiusa-chan. I will be."

Chibiusa smiled and turned back around, walking into the light.

A second later, she was gone, back to a future not even Pluto knew of.

Healer's arm tightened a little more around Sailor Moon's waist, unease suddenly taking hold of her heart. She didn't know what that was about-Chibiusa being Usagi's and Mamoru's daughter from the future-and she didn't care; that kid had a beautiful shine, too, and she'd make sure it wasn't put out prematurely.

However, the teenager's leaving reminded Healer of her and her companions' current situation.

Princess Kakyuu had sent them to make sure they heal Sailor Moon's star seed, but they weren't to stay.

_She_ couldn't stay.

What could she do, though? She was the fireball princess' guardian.

Healer turned to look at the Moon princess, taking in her appearance. The blonde's posture was relaxed, comfortable in the Starlight's hold. Her kiss swollen, petal pink lips were formed into a smile-a true smile that spread warmth through Healer's soul. Her cerulean eyes were shining with love and happiness and **_peace._**

It was this image that made Healer's resolve harden.

Sailor Moon blinked suddenly as her body was pulled into a tight embrace. At first her arms didn't cooperate with her-What was going on? Why was she suddenly being hugged?-but after a second's confusion, they wrapped tentatively around the Starlight's upper back, her hands threading lightly through soft, silver strands.

"Healer?" Usagi questioned.

"I can't stay," the Starlight's voice whispered into the blonde's ear.

Usagi felt her heart stop. Her body stiffened in the other's embrace-_Nodon'tleavemeIdon'twanttolivewithoutyouPleases tay!_-and her eyes widened. Sensing the other's panic, Healer loosened her grip slightly and leaned back, resting her forehead against the Moon senshi's. Green met blue and held the gaze determinedly.

"I love you, Usagi Tsukino," Sailor Star Healer whispered so only Sailor Moon could hear.

The blonde's eyes widened even more at the confession before relaxing, smiling so beautifully, so lovingly, she took Healer's breath away.

"I love you, too."

With that, Healer slowly untangled herself from the blonde's grasp and turned away, walking back toward her friends. When she was directly in front of them, she said, "Let's go."

Fighter and Maker stared at the older Starlight for a moment before apparently seeing something in their friend and they both nodded.

"Be safe, Sailor Moon," Maker called to the Moon Princess.

"Yeah, and don't get depressed while we're gone!" Fighter added cheekily, grinning playfully at the blonde.

Sailor Moon smiled at the two, nodding her affirmative to both.

The two senshi turned away, slightly behind the shortest Starlight. At the last second before they left to leave, Sailor Star Healer looked over her shoulder.

"I'll come back to you, Usagi," she promised.

Usagi nodded in understanding, sniffing to hold back tears.

Healer flashed a small smile and then turned back around.

The Starlights summoned their power and, in the blink of an eye, shot into the sky, becoming magnificently brilliant shooting stars.

The Moon princess collapsed to her knees.

"_**Sailor Moon!**_" Multiple voices cried in alarm.

Usagi lifted her face from looking at the ground after a moment and gazed into the worried faces of her friends as they surrounded her.

"I'm alright," Sailor Moon placated, her hands moving up and down in a "calm down" gesture. "I'm just... drained."

Everyone knew she had every right to be. To have all your worries suddenly lifted off of your shoulders made your mind and body recognize their tired state.

_**Guukyururu...**_

Everyone blinked before bursting with guffaws.

Usagi laughed embarrassedly. "I haven't eaten in a while..." Slyly, she turned her wide, puppy dog eyes toward Sailor Uranus. "Will you treat me, Haruka-san?"

The sandy blonde shook her head amusedly. "Sure, Koneko-chan, whatever you want."

The senshi of the Moon beamed.

"Oh, you've sure gotten yourself in a pickle now, Uranus," Neptune teased, noticing the glint in her princess' eyes.

Sailor Uranus mock-frowned at her lover. "Don't tease me, Michi."

"I thought you liked it when I teased you?"

"Hey!" Sailor Venus cried, suddenly popping up in front of Uranus and Neptune. "You're going to take us, too, aren't you?" And by "us", she meant Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter.

"Ano... that is... if it's okay with you, Haruka-san," Mercury quietly stuttered.

Jupiter grinned widely, albeit a bit embarrassedly, at the idea.

Mars just gaped at Venus' behavior and secretly envied her friend's nerve.

Uranus' face took on a puzzled look. "Eh? You guys too? But I only offered-"

As the sandy blonde started to object, stars shown in Venus' energetic blue eyes, her eyes taking on a puppy dog look much like Sailor Moon's.

Uranus caved.

"Ah... Sure... I guess I could treat you guys, too."

"I want to go too, Setsuna-mama!" Saturn cried excitedly, her childish grin lighting up her whole face. "Can we?"

Pluto smiled softly at the shorter senshi. "Of course. After all, Uranus is paying."

Uranus' eyes widened comically. "No way... you guys too!?"

"And me, of course," Neptune added smoothly.

"_Michi!_"

Usagi Tsukino's gaze moved up to the stars and watched as the light of Kinmoku's senshi faded with distance.

_'I'll be waiting, my Starlight.'_

* * *

Well that's the end everyone! Thank you for being so patient with me and I hope you enjoyed the story!

Please thank Midnight Violet's Haze for the idea of how Healer healed Sailor Moon's star seed, all of her patience with me and her hard work on going through the story and correcting all of the errors! She's a VERY amazing beta-reader and I recommend her to anyone!


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